Naruto: Nature's Prince
by Garnetio Solozari
Summary: Forget the rabbit hole, forget the blue pill, forget the wardrobe... what happens when you follow the butterfly? Uzumaki Naruto spent six years silently accepting things at face value, but soon his world will be flipped upside down. He will be ready... but what will happen to the family that never seemed to care? OCs, AU, smart!naruto give it a chance!
1. Chapter 1

**All right my beautiful senpais, this is my second story here so I hope that you enjoy. Yes, it is another neglect story, but you were warned in the summary, so no complaining about that!**

 **Warning: This will be laden with Original Characters, Alternate Universe nonsense, and magical mumbo jumbo. With this warning in place, I would like to avoid the flamers who curse at me about OC garbage and the like. If it makes you feel better, there will never be more than one to two OCs in a scene unless it is unavoidable, and none of them will likely be involved in pairings!**

 **Warning: Very light bashing of characters you may like. If you see bashing, then pick up a rock and bash something else as compensation. May I recommend that printer from Office Space, or the bread maker from Old School?**

 **Warning: Very light feels have been detected by the Feel-O-Meter. Lt Sanchez is working to pinpoint the exact location, but all we have is "near the bottom."**

 **Warning: We have run out of a proper supply of damns in the kitchen to hand out, so we have closed for the day. Redirect your flames to the nearest blacksmith. If you cannot find the blacksmith, wander around while screaming "where's the blacksmith" as loudly as possible while carrying around a bag of useless objects that in no way aid in your current situation.**

 **Try to enjoy. Love yourself every night.**

* * *

Ignorance is both a blessing and a curse depending on the who, what, and why. While contesting with intelligence, ignorance is the worst enemy to the challenged scholar. An act of crime in the eyes of the many may be an accident of ignorance to the innocent party. Forthcoming compliments from the ignorant admirer may mean the world to the ears of their cherished one. Ignorance influences many things both good and bad, both great and small, and can ripple across the world inspiring change. Unbeknownst to a certain family of excitable and happy people, their ignorance will bring about great change in the years to come, but at a cost that none of them are prepared to accept.

This particular family unit, from the point of view of an outsider, would be the picturesque of perfection. The father was a strong man, perhaps the strongest alive, with a following of loyal friends and allies to create the flawless bubble of peace for his wonderful little home. His wife, a doting mother and lover, had a fire in her heart that drove her through any and all of life's little blessings and hiccups with the passion of ten women. Their two little ones, your average spunky six year olds, had wonderful personalities and the energy to power the world. The four of them were eternally happy without a single care in the world… save for who was allowed seconds at supper.

The only flaw in the golden frame of their picture would be the absence of the third child, another six year old with the same energy and charm as his siblings. Most often one could find him away from the others seeing to his own wonders and paying no heed to the raucous his family often roused in the family yard. You see, the little boy was quite possibly the most ignorant of all, but this was the one instance where ignorance was truly bliss. He had always been left to the side to his own devices for as far back as he could remember, never even knowing the soft touch of his mother's hugs or his father's proud hand ruffling his hair. No, this little boy had no idea what he was missing, but that was just fine for Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto.

Naruto was a gentle spirit who rarely fit into the family of rough, tough strangers who shared his blood. His siblings, a set of two girls who looked eerily like their mother, often times found entertainment in rough housing and games of sport where competition was key, though both had opposing personalities. The elder of the two by two minutes, something that she often flaunted during arguments, was named after a distant relative, Namikaze Uzumaki Mito. Though she was often provoked into arguments and wrestling matches, she was actually the more tame of the two girls. She wore her hair straight, cut to the length of her shoulders, and often adorned with hair pins made to emulate cherry blossoms. Her opposite was like the yin to her yang named Namikaze Uzumaki Akane, or as her elder sister often called her, 'Angry Child.' She kept her hair in a pixy cut as if to emphasize her very tomboyish attitude, thought she did accessorize with hair clips shaped like foxes.

Both girls had very passionate beliefs and strong wills to further emulate their mother, the one and only Namikaze Uzumaki Kushina. The woman was as hot spiritually as she was physically, if the stares the woman endured were any indication. After having triplets one would think she would maintain a much more… rounded figure, but her Uzumaki genes had blessed her with the metabolism of a God. It took her a mere few weeks of proper eating habits and light exercises to regain her modest frame, though she would need to pick up her former training schedule to ever see her former hourglass again. Regardless of her fit body and perfect complection, the woman suffered insecurities about her blazing red hair, something her daughters found incredibly favorable in contrast.

The only man to ever save the woman from her doubts was the love of her life, Namikaze Minato, otherwise known as the legendary Yellow Flash, or the more professional title of Fourth Hokage. The man wore his sunshine blonde hair in a mess of spikes that seemed impossible, while two very long locks framed his chiseled face. The man was quite frankly the most desired male in the nations, and as such had been hard pressed to find a woman who was truly worthy of his attention. He found that woman in Kushina, and spent the entirety of his young adult life pursuing her until the dense redhead had finally acknowledged his intentions. It only took a failed kidnapping… but its all in the details, right? He married the fair maiden in secret to protect their fledgling family from outside threats, though after the revelation of their incoming triplets it became obvious that the people needed to know about them sooner rather than later before wild rumors spread.

Little Naruto had been born first before his little sisters, and it was said by the medics on duty that it was like he had been eager to meet his family. Nary a cry escaped him upon his firth breath, and his eyes were alight with wonder as he took in every new sight and sound. That analytical eye had never left him and often times his curiosity would get the best of him. Like his father he wore blonde hair that seemed content in its own haphazard chaos. Unlike both of his siblings, he had never found pleasure in games of competition or arguments, and would even go so far as to simply agree to nearly everything he had been thrust into. As he was often left to do, he would sit alone and take in the sights and sounds around him, tuning out the noise of humanity to revel in the purity of nature. While his siblings would never stop or sit down, he found the stillness pleasing. This odd behavior was unpopular with his two sisters, so the pair never saw a need to include him in their games, and eventually his passive agreeable nature forced the two of them to avoid bringing him into arguments as well.

No, Naruto didn't quite belong with the Namikaze family, but that was just fine. This was normal, or so it had been since before he could remember, so it must just be as it is. To judge his own fate based on the unknown was pointless.

* * *

The sun was somewhere between the center of the sky and the tree line in the west as the afternoon settled over Konoha. The Village Hidden in Leaves was by far the most peaceful village among the great nations, though this was in no way a small feat. The people there fought hard to maintain such peace through their proud and skilled mercenaries, better known as ninjas. At any given time during the day the shadows would flex or shimmer with the presence of the unseen guardians of the village. Ninjas were the pride of their village, the elite, the silent protectors, the unseen knights who would fight and die to protect their home. To be a ninja one must maintain a love for and loyalty to their village and its people, a sharp and keen mind with the will to endure what most would falter before, and the strength of body to achive their goals and keep the people from harm.

The major clans of Konoha were the elite, even among the common man outside of the ninja forces. The larger the clan, the more prestige they demanded, and the more strength they could boast. No Hokage had ever been a non-clan ninja, and the likelihood of such a thing was laughable at best. Even the Fourth claimed a clan-hood before attempting to take the hat, even though his clan had been only a single man at the time. If it hadn't been for his skill and contribution to the village's war efforts, he would likely have died a non entity, but that was neither here nor there. The Namikaze man had married one of the last living Uzumaki clan members, and with the birth of their children they were well on their way to growing their joined clans from the ground up. The family had purchased a rather large area of unused land in the Clan District to start construction of their own compound, and while they were few for now, they would have the space needed for expanding as time went on.

The Namikaze Uzumaki Compound had only two buildings fully constructed and ready for use. The larger of the two was the Namikaze Mansion, which was really only a five bedroom home with two floors build in more modern style with hints of classical accents for decorative purposes. The ground floor housed the large kitchen, living room, dining room, small library, and a moderately sized study where the head of the family could work from home on his off days. The upper floor held the five bedrooms, all spacious with their own windows. The master bedroom had its own private bathroom, while two of the smaller bedrooms shared a bathroom between the two. The two smallest bedrooms shared the bathroom in the hall where access was more public, but it was still a perfectly fine bathroom with all the amenities.

Built off the side of the main house was a small dojo for indoor training, weapons training, and general storage of training equipment. The door was adorned with the Namikaze and Uzumaki clan symbols, and the décor on the walls represented both clans in honor of their fighting styles and rules of etiquette. Across from the dojo was the second functioning building in the compound which housed an Uzumaki temple. While the Namikaze had never been very spiritual, the Uzumaki were rather well known for their temples and sacred practices. Kushina would be the first to deny any talent with ceremony or religious observation, but she was also one to hold firm to her heritage, and to respect her fallen people she had insisted the small temple be built.

In the grassy field behind the main house the area had been set up with several pieces of equipment for training in flexibility, throwing accuracy exercises, and weight training. The dull thud of metal impacting wood and canvas echoed through the area accompanied by the occasional grunts of disappointment that only a little girl could make in her frustration. Dressed in a white tank top and black skirt with matching shorts underneath was little Namikaze Uzumaki Akane. Her civilian sandals were covered in freshly cut grass from her occasional frustrated kicks and stomps that effectively tore up the lawn. Her left hand held a kunai holster that was about three quarters empty while her right was balled up tightly gripping the handle of a fresh knife. With a look of complete concentration she took aim, and then cocked her little arm back to ready her throw. In a flash she had let the blade loose and soon enough the dull thud sounded, and was followed by another very frustrated yelp of discontent.

"Akane-chan, that was better, you shouldn't let a little miss get you so riled up." Her father, Namikaze Minato, said from his spot to her left. He was dressed in his usual attire that consisted of the standard ninja uniform. A green flack jacket covered his long sleeves black shirt, black shinobi pants were secured around his waist with a simple belt, white bandages concealed his calves and stopped his pant legs just below the knees and led down to his combat sandals, and a white haori with short sleeves completed his look. The haori was decorated with red flames licking at the bottom, and had a small orange rope that was used to secure it to his body near his chest. The only visible tool pouch on his body was the standard kunai holster on his right thigh, but anyone who knew the man knew that at any given time he could probably equip an entire unit with the number of hidden blades he carried at any given time.

Akane huffed at the patronizing words of her father, but she did feel a little better because of them, "I keep missing though! I need to get better!"

Her father laughed at the adorable little angry pout his daughter was wearing as she stared intently at the target he had set up for her on one of the wooden training posts, "Trust me, you will. You are only six little one, you have plenty of time to become an amazing kunoichi like your mother."

"I want to be like you Tou-chan, I want to be the best at everything and be able to beat up all the baddies with my super awesome ninja skills!" Akane held her fist up while flames burned in her eyes, the flames of determination.

Minato chuckled while rubbing the back of his head, "Well whoever you want to be like, it doesn't matter, what does matter is that if you want to get better you need to be patient and keep working at it. And just so you know, your mother is way stronger than me, I am just the stupid one to volunteer for the hat. Isn't that right, honey?"

The blonde directed his attention to the beauty standing nearby overseeing their other daughter. Namikaze Uzumaki Kushina turned her smooth face toward her husband and flashed him a dazzling smile that only served to create a stunning contrast between the brightness of her face and the richness of her red hair. She was dressed in her usual white short-sleeved blouse with a loose fitting ocean blue dress that flowed down to below her knees and just barely hugged her womanly figure. Her rather plain shinobi sandals were her standard foot wear when training, though she was not opposed to the high heeled kunoichi sandals, combat sandals, and civilian sandals that most favored while out and about or on missions.

"You better believe it, 'ttebane! Ah hell…"

A light giggle erupted from behind her as she tried to keep herself from cursing. Kushina turned her violet eyes on her eldest daughter with a small glint and a rather vicious smirk, "You got something to add, cherry tomato?"

Namikaze Uzumaki Mito winced under the heavy gaze of her mother and the use of her most hated moniker. The little mini-Kushina was seated on the grass in a cute little floral sundress that was pooled around her while she kept her legs folded. Her civilian sandals were neatly set aside so her bare feet could breathe and rest in the moist grass. She had been working on accessing her chakra with her mother while her father was busy tutoring Akane in throwing exercises. Hearing her mother say the verbal tick that she knew the elder redhead hated with a seething passion had caused her to lose focus and giggle, though now she was regretting her poor sense of humor.

"N-no, nothing Kaa-san…" Mito prayed her mother would be merciful.

Kushina smiled warmly while turning back to her husband, "That's what I thought, Mito-chan. How is Akane coming along, my love?"

Minato placed a hand on top of Akane's head and ruffled her hair while she pouted and tried to bat his hand away, "She is doing well, but she is like her mother always wanting to do better and train harder."

Kushina sighed while shaking her head, but the smile on her lips was a give away that she wasn't bothered by the comment, "What are we going to do with these kids, I swear."

Minato smiled a little as he heard the code phrase, "Oh… I don't know… maybe some kind of punishment for not making a lot of progress today?"

At this point both of the girls were eyeing each other warily as they felt the atmosphere grow cold. Punishment in the Namikaze home meant running laps… until you collapsed… and then running ten more. Seeing both of their beloved daughters consumed with dread brought prankster smirks to their parent's faces, but soon enough Minato and Kushina had figured they suffered enough. Kushina cleared her throat to catch their attention while wearing a neutral face of indifference. In a stoic voice she loomed over Mito ominously.

"Punishment indeed… Let it be… all you can eat Bar-B-Q."

It took nearly ten seconds for the words to sink into the skulls of the little knuckleheads, but when it did their cheers could be heard clear to the other side of the Clans District. Two red bullets slammed into both parents simultaneously as the little ones cheered praises to their greatness. Minato and Kushina shared a knowing glance as they held their little bundles at bay before leading them both into the house to get ready for a night on the town. As the racket was finally muffled by the sliding glass door at the back of the kitchen, the final member of the family released a content sigh of relief.

* * *

Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto was seated near the edge of the yard relaxing in the shade with his back propped against one of the hearty trees that bordered their yard. He was dressed in a forest green short sleeve shirt, woodland camouflage shorts, and blue shinobi sandals. His blonde hair was messy as usual, and his cerulean blues were half shut as he rubbed some sleep from their lids. While his sisters had been training he had taken a nap, considering he was once again left to his own devices. Standing up, he stretched and let loose a small yawn that made him look like a fox kit with the odd birthmarks on his cheeks that looked eerily like whiskers. He looked around at the mess of training equipment with a sigh before he walked over to the set of training kunai that Akane had dumped unceremoniously all over the ground. He gathered together ten of the knives and stood at about twice the range Akane had been standing before taking a ready pose.

"Don't force the throw, let the kunai flow…" Naruto whispered calmly as he let his senses block out the noise of the village.

Thud… thud… thud… thud… The echo of the wood sounded as each kunai was thrown with ease toward the target his father had set up. As the tenth thud resounded he stood up straight and let out a slow breath while the world came alive again. His calm and calculating gaze fell on the small circle of knives protruding from the post, the canvas of the target torn and hanging loose from the post like a wind sock. A small smile danced across his lips as he admired his work, though he knew he would have to do better if he wanted to be accepted into the academy in two years… or at least that is what he assumed given that he knew next to nothing about what he should know. He heard small bits and pieces here and there from his parents during their daily training sessions with the girls, but without direct tutelage he would be going in blind.

Giving a noncommittal shrug at his thoughts he sat down in the soft grass to enjoy the breeze blowing through the yard. With his mind still on his kunai skills he found himself faced with the same question that had been on his mind many times before. He simply wanted to know why his sisters required so much attention while he was allowed to live in solitude. He assumed that it was because that is how things were, but for some reason he had a nagging feeling that he was wrong, not that it bothered him though. As far as he had seen, the two of them clearly needed all of the attention they could get since neither seemed able to handle their own training, but he wasn't sure why that was either. He was only six for crying out loud, give him a break.

As a young child's mind is wont to do, his drifted from such confusing thoughts to the present, in particular the very beautiful butterfly that had decided to take a small break on his nose. His body still and his breathing calm and shallow, his eyes nearly crossed as he tried to examine the little creature. It was clearly a monarch butterfly judging by the familiar black, white, and deep orange coloration. Naruto got the odd sensation that the little critter was gazing into his eyes, but as he went to speak his thoughts out loud the butterfly flew from his nose toward the wooded area of untouched land that surrounded the compound leading away from the district proper. Naruto watched as the little insect flew away and he sighed without knowing why he felt the need to do so. It was a few moments later that he realized the monarch was hovering and flapping about in a small warped circular pattern.

Naruto waited for a few minutes while his eyes followed the hypnotic pattern that the little creature wove through the air, and he grew curious, "The heck are you up to…?"

As if to respond to his comment the butterfly flew gracefully on a soft breeze back toward him. He stiffened as a strange feeling took his senses, something he would later realize were his shinobi instincts that ran strongly though his blood. The monarch flew two full circles around him as he twirled to keep the thing in his sights. On the second spin he grew slightly dizzy and fell backward onto his butt. As he shook his head softly to shake away the feeling he could have sworn he heard a small giggle, but when he looked around there wasn't anyone nearby. Soon enough he spotted the butterfly hovering once again in the same area, but even closer to the tree line. His innocent mind finding no fault in following a pretty butterfly, Naruto rose to his feet and followed after the little thing. As he was suspecting, it flew further into the wooded area, but he was far too interested in this strange bug to bother worrying about potential dangers.

* * *

Stationed on the roof of the Namikaze Compound main house, an ANBU in a dog mask slowly emerged from the shadows to keep an eye on the little blonde lad wandering in the woods. He was dressed in the standard ANBU uniform complete with the short sword that many agents favored strapped to his back. A very eye catching head of silver hair spiked up messily doing very little to conceal his true identity from those who knew him, but those who knew him knew that he wasn't someone to trifle with regardless of whether you recognize him or not. His only visible eye was narrowed as he kept silent vigil over the boy that his former sensei often left alone for hours on end, much like this quiet afternoon. It baffled him to no end why a man would simply… forget his first born son, but considering the circumstances of the triplets' birth it wasn't too hard to figure out their logic.

As a rule of thumb the ANBU agent made it a point to never recall the events of that day in detail, but try as he might he could never forget the lives lost that day. If his sensei had been just a few minutes later, there may not have been anyone left alive that day. Being stationed that day inside the village walls instead of by his leader's side, he didn't know the specifics of how, but he was debriefed on what and it chilled him to the bone. From the tale spun by Minato, someone or something had broken the great Nine Tailed Fox out of its former container… his wife. To make matters worse she had only just given birth to the Namikaze triplets, which left her body weak and nearly broken. It was by a miracle that she survived, though from what his sensei told him the both of them had fallen unconscious right after… he had sealed the monster away into his two daughters.

By all accounts Minato should have died that day, but somehow he survived… even though he had summoned the Shinigami to aid in the sealing of the beast. According to the Third Hokage who arrived on the scene moments after the danger had finally passed, Minato had indeed used the technique, but the family was safe and sound huddled together unconscious, except for little Naruto who regarded the old man Sarutobi Hiruzen with dazzlingly bright and curious eyes. The ANBU guarding Hiruzen that day recalled the event in the barracks later that week as one of the most startling things they had ever seen. No newborn should have such a calculating gaze, but at the same time those eyes were so innocent and pure even as they looked around with endless curiosity. Several of the female agents in ANBU had to be ordered specifically to remain professional as that day wore on, their screams of 'kawaii' causing disruptions and startling the male agents on more than one occasion.

From that day forward Minato and Kushina spent almost all of their time doting over their daughters and keeping them safe and happy. It was a little known fact that Jinchuriki needed lots of love in order to keep their beasts at bay, and with two little girls to keep happy their time was easily monopolized. Only a handful of ANBU knew the truth about Naruto's lack of care, but their position didn't allow them to speak their minds on the matter. Many, like the dog masked ANBU watching over Naruto now, did what they could to keep the boy safe even if it wasn't their place to give direct and open aid to the boy. When he wandered off exploring they would protect him with their lives, when he seemed hungry they would leave bento out for him to find in his adventures, and if he were ever hurt they would be sure to have medics 'stumble' upon the boy on their way about the village. It was difficult to watch without action, but the ANBU were nothing if not professional.

Our dog masked friend let his mind refocus just in time to see Naruto vanish into the woods surrounding the home and he readied himself to follow. As his legs tensed for the leap that would cover the gap to the woods and land him high in the forest canopy, he felt his body grow suddenly heavy. His vision blurring he realized almost too late that he was under a Genjutsu illusion of some kind. Silently releasing a burst of chakra he realized then how dire his situation was as his vision only worsened. The world began to twist and he was vaguely aware that it was because he was falling over. His body fell back so that he was safe on the roof without any danger of falling and wounding himself. As the darkness enveloped him into a warm and dreamless sleep, he was unaware of the soft purple light that danced above him for a brief moment before vanishing in a soft, warm breeze.

* * *

Naruto walked through the wooded area for a half hour as he kept his eye on the monarch butterfly ahead of him. Being a bundle of energy, he never tired even as he hiked through the rough terrain. His eyes seemed to glow as he took in the beauty of nature around him and he forgot completely that he was supposedly inside the village walls. He never saw when the grass changed colors and transitioned to a much deeper green than he had ever seen around Konoha. His eyes danced around him as the trees he knew ended and gave way to tall birch trees with large fields of aspen trees spotting the landscape around him. He noticed the temperature lower a little, but it was still pleasant even in the shade. Butterflies seemed to thrive around the aspen tree groves, but none of them seemed interested in him besides the monarch that continued to lead him further into the depths of this odd forest. Somewhere in the back of his mind he knew he wasn't in Konoha anymore, but he just couldn't stop now after following this path so far.

Soon enough the afternoon sun had burned out and started its decent toward the west, which made the forest grow darker. Naruto began to stumble and nearly fell a few times causing him to yelp in surprise and utter things like, 'dang it' and 'sons of a bagel.' He was growing tired of his worsening blindness in the dark, and then as if his silent prayers were answered the forest began to… glow? It was odd at first, and with time it only became stranger, as the forest path he had been following seemed to brighten with hues of light-blue and green flashing like fire flies. He scanned the area for any hint of fireflies or maybe even some kind of glow worms, but he couldn't spot anything quick enough before it would vanish to the dark again. Deciding that looking this gift horse in the mouth was foolish he chose instead to forge onward.

Naruto must have walked for another hour in the strange glowing forest when he finally found something truly odd. As if bordering on the edge of a large hedge maze, he found a dense wall of thickly woven leaves, vines, and thorny stems that formed a rough dome of green concealing Kami knows what from his view. The pretty monarch butterfly that he had been following disappeared into the depths of the overgrowth much to his confusion. He had no idea how the flighty little thing could maneuver through that mess, but he hoped that it didn't hurt itself in the attempt. After making a full circle around the large area he found no way to crawl through, so he struck a cute thinking pose as his eyes narrowed.

"Okay… I feel like I wanna go in there… but there isn't a way through this thing… dang it." Naruto scratched his cheek as he silently cursed the shrubs, "I wish it would open up or…"

Naruto started a little when he saw the vines and leaves shiver. Upon uttering the words open up the plants seemed to come alive and eagerly obey his order. In a short time there was a perfectly shaped archway leading into the darkness of the weird plant wall, and even though he could hear that little voice in his head screaming not to go in there, the little adventure seeking part of his brain was fired up and hollering for him to go in already. Steeling himself as well as a six year old can, he walked into the dark tunnel of greenery and felt the hair on his neck stand on end as the arch closed up behind him. The pure darkness scared him, but his fear was washed away instantly as a new arch in front of him opened up and a bright light nearly blinded him. As they adjusted to the new light he got his first glimpse of what lay before him and his eyes widened with childish glee.

Standing tall and strong in the center of the area was a weeping willow tree with thousands of leaves of different colors hanging down to create curtains that draped down around the large trunk of the tree. Perhaps calling the tree large was underplaying it, but even as it stood taller than all the trees in the surrounding forest and spread wider with branches threatening to stretch into the tall dome of bushy vines around it, there were even larger trees around Konoha. Still, the colorful leaves and the curves of the branches above were far more beautiful than the boring trees around the village. What drew his eyes the most was the large fresh water spring surrounding the base of the tree and spreading out in a big rough circle around the clearing. The water seemed to glow with power much like the odd lights that had guided him there, but this was different somehow. The glowing water provided such a brilliant light that it brightened the entire area, and had obviously been what had nearly blinded him.

Surrounding the water were hundreds of different varieties of flowers, and bushes practically bursting with various colors of berries. Eyeing the berries he felt his stomach rumble, so he wandered over to the nearest one to gather a few to sate his hunger until he could get back home. Finding a particularly ripe berry he grabbed it gently with his hand to pick it, but he was met with resistance. A few gentle tugs garnered little results so he gave it a good harsh tug, but still there were no results. Frustrated, he huffed before using both his hands to give it one last mighty pull. Naruto felt the slightest little bit of resistance slip, but before he could rejoice he felt what could only be a harsh smack on his knuckles akin to having your hand slapped by an angry mother for digging into the cookie jar. Yelping in surprise he let go and yanked his hands away from the bush to escape from whatever had startled him, only for his eyes to widen again as his jaw dropped.

The bush that he had been trying to pick from suddenly glowed with a bright blue light before the berry he had been tugging floated up into the air… in the hands of a tiny winged person! Naruto stumbled back as the little glowing person flew into his face with the berry held to the side. He couldn't see any distinct face, but he could almost see the scolding glare that the little thing must be sporting judging by the little voice that soon sounded from it.

"And just who gave you permission to go around stealing other people's food, hm?" The little thing spoke in a feminine voice that resounded with a mix of motherly and pure feminine fury.

Naruto looked sheepish as he eyed the little thing with worry, "S-sorry Glowy-chan… I didn't mean to steal, I was just really hungry."

The blue glow seemed to intensify a little and Naruto felt a certain dread fill him as she spoke again, "….Glowy-chan? Did you just… call me…?"

Naruto realized his mistake and tried to restore peace as quickly as he could, "Sorry! I don't know your name, so I just kinda… gave you a… nickname?"

There were a few moments of silence while the boy stared into the bright blue lady holding the berry against her side. Then, with a small indignant huff, she flew back into the bush disappearing among the leaves as various little bits of laughter seemed to tinkle in the breeze. Naruto was still in shock from being scolded by the little person as he stood up, only to leap out of his skin when he heard another voice speak from behind him. This one was also decidedly feminine and carried an air of graceful nobility, though unlike some of the higher ups that had been to visit his family in the past he heard no condescension in their tone, only amusement.

"Don't mind Ana-san, Naruto-kun, she's just a little protective of her berry bushes."

Naruto turned around expecting another little glowing person, but he was very surprised to be faced with three fully grown adults. Two of them were dressed in traditional Chinese Hanfu clothes customized for the male and female in hues of deep green and black. Each wore a Jian style straight sword at their waists that looked elegant, but battle ready. The male's sword was encased in a black sheath that stretched to about sixty five centimeters in length and was engraved with depictions of crawling ivy. The guard was a simple set of forward sweeping wings made of iron, and the grip was large enough for a hand and a half with tightly wound wire covering the wood beneath. A long red tassel was tied to the pommel which was shaped like a rather sharply pointed tear-drop leaf. The sword strapped the waist of his female associate was uniform in design save for the length of the grip and blade, both shorter for a one handed fighting style with a forty five centimeter blade.

Standing a foot ahead of the two was a woman, perhaps the most beautiful woman that Naruto had ever seen, aside from his mom of course. Hey, just because she doesn't seem to notice him doesn't mean he can't still be a momma's boy! Regardless, this woman was the very definition of grace and beauty. Her body was lithe and sported modest curves for a more subtle beauty seldom seen among the hardened women of the ninja village. Slender legs that stretched for days were barely visible beneath the hem of a long gown of a familiar yellowish orange. Her petite feet were hidden among the tall grass and flowers beneath her, but there was no hint of footwear to see. The gown she wore was sleeveless so that a good amount of her flawless smooth skin was visible, with a hint of her shoulders that teased the eyes. Her gown was cut high enough to hide away her assets from prying eyes furthering the regal air that had dripped from every syllable she spoke before. A heart shaped face glowing with warmth was framed by long locks of straight platinum blonde hair that stopped near her chin, the rest flowing to her shoulders and down to her mid back behind her. Naruto was in a trance as he stared into her eyes, his cerulean blues pierced by startlingly grey eyes that seemed to peer right into his soul.

The beauty brought her delicate hand to her lips to conceal a small, pretty smile as her eyes danced in amusement, "Naruto-kun, you should stop staring… its embarrassing."

Somehow that helped to snap Naruto out of his small half-coma and he blanched in horror. Back in Konoha it was often punishable to stare at any girl for too long and he was not in the mood to have his brains bashed in by this pretty woman or her two friends with their very dangerous looking weapons. With a swiftness that can only be born into anti-perverts Naruto bowed at the hips several times like a novelty drinking bird.

"I-I'm so sorry miss! I didn't mean to stare! Please forgive me, pretty-beautiful-not at all wanting to beat a child senseless-sama!"

The platinum blonde let loose a small nervous chuckle like wind chimes in a summer breeze as her two guards exchanged a look. She found her composure before clearing her throat softly and smiling toward the little human boy still holding a firm ninety degree angle bow, "You're forgiven, Naruto-kun, and please call me Aingeal. You have nothing to fear from us here in our sacred hollow. Well… maybe Ana, but she's a sweet girl at heart."

"Ana… do you mean that little… glowing lady with the berry? What the heck was she?" Naruto asked as his fear washed away in favor of his usual innocent curiosity.

Aingeal walked over to Naruto and knelt down to be on level with him as she spoke, "We call ourselves _Aos Si_ a term from our native home lands. You would call us fairies…"

Aingeal was prepared for denial or suspicion, but nothing could have surprised her more when Naruto gave a nod and a bright smile before replying cheerfully, "Yatta! That's so cool! Wait, you said us, so does that mean you and your two friends are fairies too? I don't see any wings though. Oh, do you hide them? Can I see?"

Naruto felt her smooth and delicate hand placed over his mouth and he stopped on a dime from his rapid fire questioning while his cheeks lit up like fireworks during the Kyuubi festival. His eyes looked up to see the mirthful look on Aingeal's face and he only felt more embarrassed by his pervious enthusiasm. After a moment she was obviously aware that he was done speaking at speeds no human ought to be able to keep up with so her hand was removed. Before Naruto could apologize or even attempt to look sheepish out of pure decency he was startled by the appearance of three sets of wings. Aingeal sprouted a set of pure white wings that were eerily similar to those of a monarch butterfly. The gossamer wings fluttered momentarily as if stretching before relaxing in a sedate position perpendicular to her back.

Looking behind her Naruto was pleasantly surprised that her two friends had also revealed their wings. The woman, who he just now noticed had beautiful straight violet hair, had a set of very sharp petite wings that reminded him of the white butterflies that often crowded in the parks around the village, though hers were the same shade of purple as her hair. The male sported a set of longwings that stood up proudly over his broad shoulders that were colored a deep green like his uniform… and his shoulder length hair! Naruto could see that the color of one's hair seemed to correspond to the color of one's wings, but he wasn't going to just assume anything. That had gotten him in trouble before.

"As you can see, yes, we hide them when we meet a human for he first time. Though I know you can be trusted little one, we can never be too careful. We can assume a very human-like form in order to blend in, but it severely hinders our power, so we must do our best to give no one reason to harm us. I hope you aren't upset that we were hiding something from you." Aingeal spoke sincerely with a hint of worry in her voice.

Naruto merely smiled at her while dismissing her worries with his next statement, "Don't worry Aingeal-sama, if you say that it was important then I can't be mad. Things are the way they are, ya know?"

Aingeal regarded the little one with a tilt of her head, "You are… a very intelligent little one, aren't you? At six years old you speak like you are much older."

"In Konoha ninjas have to learn fast because we start to train from an early age. I don't know how to write too good yet, and there are a lot of big words that make my head all fuzzy, but I learned to speak early because of how important my family is. I don't do much talking, but if I get talked to I wanna be ready." Naruto answered with innocence and not a hint of sadness when referring to his lack of socialization.

Aingeal didn't like the sound of his last statement so she let her curiosity get the best of her, "Naruto, what do you mean you don't do much talking?"

Without missing a beat he gave her a warm smile, "Oh I don't get talked to very often Aingeal-sama. When we get visits from our Godparents they usually spend their time with my parents or my sisters. I tried talking to my Godfather once, but he summoned a toad for me to talk to instead while he told a story to my Tou-san and my imoutos. Gama-kun was nice, we shared a set of dango while he showed me how to hop. I never bother my Godmother because she is usually giving the girls a check up. She is the best doctor ever, ya know? You don't bother a doctor while they are working."

"I see… well, your Kaa-san and Tou-san must spend time with you, right? And your two imouto must love to bother their nii-san?" Aingeal wore a warm smile, but internally she had a very bad feeling.

"Tou-san is very, very busy at work leading the village. He is super strong so he has to be ready to protect everyone. When he has time at home he spends it with Mito and Akane so they can get stronger because they… they are sick, I think. Mom said once that they needed a lot of care so that they could stay healthy. I want them to be okay, so its better if everyone does everything they can. Mito and Akane don't like me very much, and I think its because I'm a boy. I don't let it bother me though, it is the way it is." Naruto gave a small shrug as he put his hands in his pockets, his face still smiling serenely without a hint of force behind it.

Aingeal felt a little sorry for him, but she just couldn't pity the boy when she looked into his innocent eyes and saw only the light of a pure soul. So many would have fallen prey to depression and sadness, but Naruto was just… content with how things were. It wasn't proper, and she had everything she could do to not order his family pranked severely for their stupidity, but if Naruto was all right with it… she would endure. Besides, she could always send out a few of her people later on once her anger had cooled down enough for her idea of pranks to not include hot tar and down pillows. Gathering herself up she stood back on her feet and pushed her inner feelings aside to deal with the now.

"You're such a ray of sunshine, Naruto-kun. Come, I want to show you something important." Aingeal held out her hand toward the child and her smile brightened when his warm palm met hers.

The two of them walked around the clearing along the edge of the spring. Naruto noticed several small bits of light fly up and out of the surrounding bushes and down from the branches high above them. Each of the small lights was another fairy and now that they weren't hiding he could see many dozens of colors besides the blues and greens that he had seen before. It was at that moment he realized that he had been following dozens of these little fairies on his way there. The thought that he wasn't alone out there brought a warm feeling to his stomach. It was odd to feel something like that just because he had been with others, even if they were little fairies that were hiding from him. Aingeal noticed his internal struggle by the look on his face.

"Are you okay Naruto-kun?"

Naruto looked up at her as they strolled slowly to avoid crushing any of the flowers or bushes littering the landscape, "Well, I just got that on my way here I was following a bunch of you guys. I got this weird feeling in my tummy… like I warmed up or something… when I thought I wasn't alone in the woods."

Aingeal nodded while listening, "Well Naruto, sometimes it feels good to not be alone. We fairy folk have always lived together since the beginning. We believe in family and community above all, and we guard the forests to protect our home and our people from that which lingers in the dark."

"That which… lingers?" Naruto copied slowly as his mouth felt out the word.

Aingeal smiled and nodded once more, "Yes Naruto, there are things that hide in dark places while we live in the light. These dark things have always been at war with us. It is as it is, so you would say."

Naruto brightened up with understanding when she put it in such familiar terms. Those words were what he lived by and how he saw past the complexities of his little life. Seeing that Aingeal had nothing more to add he decided to let the conversation rest and focus on where he was being led. The two were headed to a very large tree stump that seemed very out of place amidst so much life. To assume that the remains of what was likely an intimidating great oak was dead would be a very big mistake. Naruto noticed that the roots dug into the ground had suffered no damage or rot even though the tree must have been felled long ago. With the curious eyes of a child Naruto leaned over the large stump to examine the many hundreds of rings that displayed the age of the ancient tree with wonder.

Aingeal walked to kneel down opposite he little boy with a serene smile on her face. Her delicate hand gently brushed across the smooth surface of the wood with care. No matter how many times she came to view this particular old stump she couldn't help the feelng of warmth in her heart. Each time she visited this spot it was like seeing an old friend that you hadn't seen in years, which in reality wasn't far off. She saw Naruto engrossed in trying to count the rings and she couldn't suppress a giggle. It wasn't often that the fairies were visited by any mortals, much less any children. Their innocence was heartwarming to the fairy folk, and just by the idle chatter she heard while passing through the berry bushes and flower patches she could tell everyone was feeling it.

Naruto let out a startled yelp of surprise when he felt the wood beneath his hands shift and shiver, "Whoa! What the heck is that? Did I mess up something?"

Aingeal couldn't hold back her light laughter seeing the panic in his eyes, "Oh no, not at all Naruto-kun. Dervenn was just waking up, that's all. Also, he is a bit ticklish."

Naruto blinked a few times before looking down at the stump to see the surface of the wood moving like water, the rings warping as the wood creaked and groaned like the steps in an old house. Naruto let his hand touch on the shifting surface of the wood and felt it shiver at his touch. Swallowing a little lump in his throat he let his hand glide across and watched in awe as it left a trail just like it would in his bath water. Noticing the disturbed wood settle down after a moment Naruto decided not to bother it further, even if every fiber of his being wanted him to try and make more waves. Dervenn felt the child move away and seemed to relax until the waves on the wood settled into barely noticeable ripples.

"Okay… Aingeal-sama… what the heck?" Naruto looked up at the pretty fairy in confusion.

Aingeal couldn't help giggling at the cute expression he made, and the subsequent blush on his cheeks when he realized she was giggling at him, "This is Dervenn, the Eldest Oak, Keeper of Sight and Sound. He was but a sapling when I was a child and the two of us grew over many, many years. When his trunk grew to great and the wind sought to bring him down, we blessed him so that he would continue to grow his roots beneath the earth. With his roots he sees all and hears all, no matter the tree they all speak to him and he listens. Through him we fairy folk have been able to safeguard the forests of the world for generations. The last time that Devrenn awoke to alert us of a great tragedy in the forests was six years ago on the tenth of October."

Naruto thought about that for a moment before the proverbial light bulb snapped on, "That's my birthday! Me and my sisters were born that day."

Aingeal nodded and her face grew a little sad as she let her hand glide across Devrenn causing many waves and ripples on the wood. The waves reshaped and bits of the wood shot up to create shapes right before Naruto's eyes. The boy was startled at first, but as the shapes formed and he recognized them he became very curious. Slowly a three dimensional wood model of the Kyuubi formed and snarled at him with the most unintimidating little sound he could imagine. He would have laughed if it weren't for the very serious face that he saw Aingeal wearing at the time. Keeping his laughter to himself he watched as the Kyuubi prepared some kind of attack. Little bits of wood seemed to fly up and gather into a ball that would have dwarfed one of the Hokage head statues at the monument.

Just as the suspense seemed to be wearing on Naruto he jumped when a little figure that looked just like his father flashed in to divert the attack. He might have cheered, but then he saw the scene shift and his face became grave. The attack that would have destroyed his home was sent away using his father's prized technique… only to land in the middle of a forest and obliterate hundreds of trees and all the life within them. Naruto felt something then, something he had never felt before… it was a pain of loss, and yet he didn't know why. Seeing so much of nature destroyed in a flash… even if it was a little wooden scaled down model… a tear fell from his left eye that he hadn't even noticed gathering.

"As is natural for any being, this man saved his people the best he could. Unfortunately, he sent that dark power into our forest and destroyed thousands of lives, both plants and animals. There was nothing we could do because we had only received the warning after it was too late. No one had been keeping an eye on Dervenn because we had been celebrating the marriage of my son and his beloved. My son… he felt responsible, and so he left to do whatever he could."

Naruto couldn't speak as his eyes went from Aingeal to Dervenn to watch as another scene shifted into focus. As the wood reformed it showed a struggling man and woman… his mother and father. There was a shapeless bundle there as well which he assumed were him and his sisters. His father was desperately trying to perform the technique required to seal away the beast, but the chains his mother was famous for seemed too weak to keep the Kyuubi at bay. In a last ditch effort to cause destruction the beast broke free enough to lash out with his claws towards the family, only to be stopped by a small being barely visible beyond the speck of wood that leapt up to stop the claw. The speck of wood seemed to burst to reveal a young man with shaggy hair holding a two handed Jian sword and wearing traditional Chinese style swordsman armor. His sword was raised to block the claw and the Kyuubi did not seem pleased to see this turn of events.

Naruto noticed his parents suddenly fall into a heap near their children before another fairy flew into the scene. This small speck burst into a young woman no older than the male holding the Kyuubi back with strong blocks and parries. The female saw his plight and summoned forth hundreds of roots and vines from the earth below the beast to wrap him up tightly. Kyuubi thrashed and slashed his claws wildly until one of them was on track to slash the female fairy. With no time to lose the young male fairy dashed to the rescue of his beloved and took the attack in her place, his sword falling to the ground as the young woman seemed to fall to despair.

"My son fought bravely to keep the weakened beast from doing more harm to the humans and the forest, but when he saw his wife so close to death he did the only thing he could. His sacrifice kept her alive long enough to drain the beast of his power until he could no longer fight back. Unfortunately… your father had been more successful in his attempt to perform his ritual than he had thought. The Shinigami arrived to seal away the monster as he had been instructed by your father, but when he went to collect his fee my son offered his own soul in exchange. He was dying and his light had been tainted by the demonic chakra of the Kyuubi. Not wishing to be left alone, his wife accompanied him to the afterlife… but not before the two of them left something behind to be remembered… they combined their light and left their legacy to you."

The two fairies stood holding one another even as the male trembled in shock and pain. His wife fussed and fretted as any proper lover would. She clearly was not ready to give up on him even as his light faded. Soon the Shinigami entered the scene and Naruto felt his body grow cold at the simple sight of death itself. As Aingeal had dictated to him he watched the deal be struck as the demonic fox was torn apart and sent into the two female babies in their warm bundle. The two fairies exchanged a few unheard words before they looked over to the last baby left untainted by the Kyuubi. He watched them clasp their hands together and each of them placed a kiss on their lover's knuckles. A strong light formed in their grasp that even the wood of Devrenn was having difficulty recreating. With their light drained they grew weak and could barely stand, but they had a determination in their hearts. Together they sent their light out into the air and directed it toward the little wooden Naruto. In a dazzling flash that made both Naruto and, surprisingly, Aingeal wince the light imbued itself into his little body and then vanished from sight. The scene fell apart as the Shinigami led the two fairies away.

Naruto sat back in the tall grass as he tried to put together everything that had happened in his head. He had never been told what happened that day, and he was pretty sure that no one knew about the fairies' intervention either. To think that the Kyuubi that everyone feared was trapped in his sisters' tummies… it scared the hell out of him. It only furthered his resolve to never question the watchful eyes his family kept on them, even if they did often push him away in the process. Who was he to put the safety of the village beneath something as petty as worrying over attention? There were so many things falling into place while more questions sprang up in his mind.

"I understand that this is a lot to take in, Naruto-kun. I hope that you believe all of this because you mean a great deal to my people… and to me." Aingeal looked at Naruto with sad eyes that hinted at a longing she seemed to struggle with.

Naruto, being six and not understanding much about facial expressions and body language, tilted his head cutely while wearing a puzzled look, "I don't understand. Why would I mean anything to your people?"

Aingeal let a small smile grace her lips as she looked fondly on his innocent curious eyes, "When two fairies wish to have a child they must combine their light to form a new, stronger light. There is more involved that I will touch on when you are older, but what I will tell you is that when my son and his wife combined their light they blessed you with it… leaving their legacy to you. Naruto, in a way… they became your parents."

"So wait, then you are my… my Obaa-chan?" Naruto looked up at the pretty fairy before him with eyes full of… longing?

Seeing the look in his eyes she was all too eager to nod, "Yes Naruto-kun, because of their actions I became your Obaa-chan. I can feel it in my li…"

Aingeal had no chance to speak any further before a little blonde bullet launched across Dervenn into her stomach. She felt the air rush from her lungs as two small arms held her tightly. She could feel the little boy nuzzling into her gown and she couldn't resist the urge to wrap her arms around him in return, pulling him up enough so that she could rub her face into his hair lightly. It had been six long years since the death of her son and her daughter in law, and the hole left behind in her heart had yet to close. She could feel their light from this little one and for six years she was forced to resist bringing him here to meet him. Naruto would always be the flesh and blood of the humans, but his light would be hers and that was enough for her to love him like her own.

"Aingeal Obaa-chan… am I… am I the only one?" Naruto asked softly while keeping his face pressed into her warmth.

Aingeal looked down at her little grandchild as her hand tangled into his messy hair, "What do you mean, little one?"

"I mean… are you just my Obaa-chan… are Mito and Akane your…?" Naruto sounded a little scared as if worried she would tell him something terrible.

"No, Naruto, I am yours and only yours. You are the only little one who possesses the light of my son. Why do you ask?" Her hand stopped as she leaned over to look at his face, which to her shock was stained with tears even though he hadn't been openly crying.

Naruto swallowed and when he saw her face he let his voice crack a little for the first time, "I was afraid that you would go and take care of them too… and I would be alone again. I don't think I like… being alone anymore."

"Never again, my little Naru-chan, never again."

* * *

A soft groan sounded into the night air as a certain dog masked ANBU guard awoke to the sounds of crickets playing their songs to the cool, dark night. His vision slowly returning from the blurry mess it had been, so he stood to his feet and smacked his head with his fist a couple times to shake out the cobwebs. He didn't quite understand what had happened to him, but whatever it was must have been one hell of a ride if he ended up on a random roof in the middle of the night. And then he froze and remembered that he had been guarding little Naruto, and that the boy had wandered off into the trees surrounding the Namikaze estate. Checking his watch he cursed rather loudly before slapping a hand over the mouth of his mask. Hearing no one stirring inside he quickly moved through the shadows to get into the main house.

Minato had given only a select few ANBU the ability to enter his home through the security seals placed on every inch of the house. Thankfully the dog masked home invader was a trusted friend of the family, so he slipped past the seals like nothing. Creeping through the shadows he quickly found his way to the upper floor and down the hall to the bedroom that he knew Naruto slept in. It was one of the two smaller rooms, which really seemed a bit unfair considering the boy was the eldest, their only boy, and for all intents and purposes their heir. Injustices of life aside, dog-kun found the door unlocked and entered with the stealth of a specter. The amount of relief that washed over him when he saw the unmistakable mop of blonde hair sticking out from under the covers was immeasurable. Feeling bold, he walked over to the sleeping boy and pulled the covers down enough to see the adorable sleeping face of Naruto snuggled into his pillow and holding a stuffed animal of some kind. Growing curious, he knelt down to peek at the toy and found a stuffed monarch butterfly.

' _Strange choice… but I suppose we all have our quirks. Speaking of, I think the latest book finally got delivered to the shop today…'_

Dog-kun then noticed that Naruto had some bandages around his thumb and he grew worried, though on closer inspection the bandages were secured professionally and the scent of disinfectant eased his mind. Obviously a medic had seen to the boy, which meant that _someone_ had at least taken the time to notice he was hurt. He toyed with the idea that perhaps his Godmother had been by and taken a look at the boy, but then he let his cynical side squash that idea where it lay. Feeling the need to let off steam at one of the training fields, he placed a hand on top of Naruto's head to rub a bit. To his surprise the boy reacted and seem to press into the touch, something the boy had never done during these little nightly visits that dog-kun had made during his night shifts. No one would ever be able to see it, but behind his mask he was smiling fondly at the little bundle.

' _Maybe someday soon when my time in ANBU is complete I will be able to get to know you, Naruto… I hope its soon. I always wanted a little brother.'_

Dog-kun left the room as quietly as he had come after tucking Naruto in gently. His need for pointless destruction had cooled down when the boy had reacted to his brotherly gesture, but damn did he need a shower and a bottle of sake to get rid of the headache that was plaguing him. He never saw the small green light that shined from the bedside table drawer, or the glowing little head peek out to watch him leave. Naruto would never be alone again, that was for certain.

* * *

 **There we go, first chapter to a new story over! Please read an review, let me know if I ought to keep this one going or let it die in the flames of Hades!**

 **Also, if anyone has suggestions for names that have meanings that would fit different types of fairies, suggestions for the skills of fairies, or any suggestions of any kind at all that aren't flames in disguise feel free to let me know.**

 **Don't forget to share the story with your friends!**

 **Also, notice me senpais... if it isn't too much trouble...**


	2. Chapter 2

**Garnetio Solozari with the second chapter of Nature's Prince and let me just say that this took a hell of a lot longer than I had anticipated. I've been suffering a mixture of emotional stress, writer's block, and physical ailments that I am almost positive none of you care about, so I will skip that part.**

 **For now, let me explain a little about something you might find interesting… I had to rewrite this whole chapter after having completed about eleven thousand words on the first draft. I got to the end of it and just felt… like it was wrong, and I had to redo it. See, I want things to go slowly, but I also don't want things to get boring or stale, and then there is the issue of ramming headfirst into idiotic clichés that will put all of you to sleep.**

 **Anyway, I am happy with how this rewrite came out, and I hope you enjoy it too.**

 **ALL WARNINGS FROM CHAPTER ONE ARE STILL IN EFFECT! DO NOT FLAME ABOUT ANYTHING THAT I WAS PERFECTLY CLEAR ABOUT AT THE BEGINNING OF CHAPTER ONE, I DON'T NEED THAT NEGATIVITY IN MY LIFE! READ ONLY IF YOU FIND NO QUARREL WITH THE THEMES, IDEAS, AND PLOT OF THIS FANFICTION! THANK YOU SENPAIS!**

 **Feel free to leave reviews with suggestions for weapon specializations, team placements, relationship suggestions, Original Character designs (fairies only), and of course technique suggestions. I love to get the community involved in building a great story!**

 **Also, to answer some questions, I got inspiration for names and ideas from Celtic and Gaelic myths, and the idea for this story came from God knows where, but it felt like particularly untouched territory, so here we are.**

* * *

As the sun is wont to do, eventually it must always break over the eastern sky to bring about a new day. With the birth of a new day stirs life across the land, even as those who walk the night settle in to sleep the day away. The first to rouse are the birds who seek the prize of the early morning feast, and their song brings to life those who must rise to ready their minds and bodies for the work that is to come. From the lowest farmers, to the Daimyo himself, no man can escape the duties of each day. Namikaze Minato was one such man, and his duties were so many that he must be up before the famers, and before the beasts of night go to rest their weary souls, and before the song birds chorus in the new day.

The responsibilities of wearing the hat, _the hat_ , could keep Kami herself on her toes, and even she would need a personal assistant. Being the enthusiastic leader that he was, his duties began at four each morning. His secretary would leave a "small" collection of paperwork for him to read through upon his arrival each morning. For three hours the scratching of pen on paper would be the only sound to echo through the halls like the haunting melody of angry spirits of Hokage past. By seven in the morning the paperwork will have been completed, and just in time to meet with the day's on-duty ANBU to brief them on their instructions for the day. The efficiency of ANBU is such that he can be very brief, usually ending the meetings within a half hour, giving him time to have a small breakfast.

Barely able to finish off the last sip of his lukewarm green tea, by then the staff will have all arrived to officially start their day. At five minutes passed eight his secretary would come to collect his finished paperwork, only to deliver a fresh set while blushing and stuttering out an apology when he would groan. He would dismiss the chuunin with a friendly smile and assurances that he wasn't so much bothered by her as much as the paperwork she was forced to deliver. The new paperwork would consume his soul until approximately fifteen minutes passed ten, at which time Sarutobi Hiruzen, the retired Third Hokage, would drop by to offer his free time to help in the Mission Office, which Minato would eagerly accept in favor of spending that precious time helping with his daughters' training.

Arriving back at the mansion around half passed ten he would be forced to have a proper meal by his beloved wife Kushina, which would give his daughters time to bombard him with questions. He welcomed the chance to bond with his little ones before having to drill them into the ground for the next few hours. By half passed eleven the family would all go outside to get some fresh air, and the drills would begin. Training the girls was simple, and their enthusiasm made it a truly wonderful experience. Every other day he would run the girls through something physical, and on the other days he would take his wife's place working with their spiritual training. He was hard pressed to decide which he preferred, but as long as he was able to be with his family then it didn't matter. He would even endure trying to keep their attention through a history lesson as long as it was time spent with his angels.

His duties to the village would not suffer during his time at home. At all times he would have ANBU stationed near his office to alert him of emergencies, and his Flying Thunder God technique allowed him instantaneous transportation to any corner of the village at any given time thanks to a seal array he had spent months putting together prior to his inauguration as the new Fourth Hokage. The only real duty he would neglect would be the paperwork, but whatever accumulated during this time would be taken care of the next morning. Training with the family would end around four in the afternoon. By then Kushina would have an itch to cook up a full dinner, which Minato would gladly assist her in making if the woman didn't beat him away with a tightly wound dish towel.

With nothing to do until her meal was prepared, Minato would return to his office to receive a report about the day's events after his departure, the results of any examinations at the academy, and any reports at Mission Administration that Hiruzen felt he needed to review personally so that he could act accordingly as the current Hokage. With peace time came a lack of high profile missions, which resulted in less high profile reports from his shinobi forces. Of course the occasional incident would require him to be debriefed by his men and women in person, but more often than not a simple written report was more than satisfactory.

After reviewing Hiruzen's suggestions he would sort through any Academy results that were brought to him so that he could further analyze the next crop of potential shinobi. Team placement was a much more involved process than many believed. Over the course of years data was accumulated into files that were then analyzed by the top Jonin in Konoha in order to get their assessments and suggestions. The next step involved going to the Jonin Commander to go over the current numbers of specialized ninja in the village. Based on the information gathered by the Chuunin instructors and the assessment of the Elite Jonin, the Hokage and Jonin Commander could more easily configure team templates for the next round of Jonin Sensei to choose from, and eventually build teams with. Often times there was a balanced enough selection so that each team had separate goals and specializations, but there were rare groups that would see two or more teams fitting into the same template due to a loss of capable shinobi in those fields.

Minato would have made short work of the reports by the time his wife was set to serve dinner. Teleportation allowed him the liberty to take his time and finish up his work without a need to rush at the last second. Kushina would have him sit down like he was a child the moment he returned, but she meant well enough that he could laugh it off. The family would sit down to another amazing meal while his daughters would go on and gush about the things they were planning to do the next morning with their friends. It was heartwarming to see them so happy, so carefree…

After dinner things would speed by in a blur. His wife would clean up the kitchen, and he would help regardless of the motherly glare he would get from her. The girls would go to their rooms to play, likely drowning in the toys they would often get in the mail from their wayward Godfather from places unknown. He would go to his office to brief the night ANBU who would guard the Hokage Office and his mansion. Kushina would wrangle him into some alone time before he could shower, and then it was off to bed to start again the next day. Some would call it hell, others would call it tedious, and his current Jonin Commander would call it "troublesome," but he called it paradise.

Namikaze Minato was well into his morning ritual of seeing to the large packet of paperwork that he often fantasized would someday end when a small change to his daily routine arrived in the form of an unexpected visitor. The knocking was familiar, so even at the ungodly hour of five in the morning he felt comfortable granting access with a quick and clear "Enter." Sure enough, his lips curved up into a smile as he saw the familiar dog mask that his former student wore to conceal his identity while on duty. As the man walked in he seemed to have a sort of… hesitation to his step that concerned Minato, if only a little. Usually the young man walked with a confidence that bordered on cocky, and a swagger that caught the attention of more than one feisty kunoichi. When he stopped he saluted as was his place as a member of ANBU addressing their leader.

"Hokage-sama, forgive my intrusion at this hour. I wanted to speak with you in private. I have the rest of my team keeping a close eye on your compound while I am here." Dog-kun knew to assure Minato that his duties to protect the Namikaze family weren't being ignored while he sought out this meeting.

Satisfied with his explanation, Minato nodded while smiling a bit more at the dutiful actions of his former student, "I expected nothing less, but thank you for your assurances. By all means, what would you like to discuss?"

The dog masked ANBU shifted his weight from one foot to the other a few times while gathering the spirit to make his request, "Hokage-sama, I would like to request a temporary retirement from ANBU to serve as a Special Jonin for at least two years."

Whatever Minato was expecting this was most certainly not it, and judging from the uncomfortable stance his ANBU was taking he must have shown his discontent before schooling his expression to a more professional look of indifference, "Explain yourself, Inu."

The ANBU now revealed to be Inu hesitated before responding, "I believe that my emotional attachments to your family may be hindering my ability to remain professional."

Minato's eyes narrowed slightly as he tried to remember any signs that such a claim held any water, "I do not recall any time when you have been mentioned specifically interacting with any of my family. Even Kushina has no idea that you are part of our guard detail, and you know how difficult she can be when she is around her friends and family. Explain what has happened to bring about this request."

"My concern is towards your son, Naruto." Inu replied shortly, not quite sure how to really explain how he was feeling.

Minato rubbed his chin as he sat back to recall anything that seemed out of place. Naruto was such a pleasant child that never complained or caused a fuss. Most of the time, the boy was so quiet that it seemed he wasn't even there. He remembered a brief discussion that he had with Kushina around their triplets' sixth birthday regarding training the boy, but it was decided that there would simply be no time for it. There was nothing malicious about the decision, it was just a lack of time in each day to see to all three of their children's shinobi training, and if he remembered correctly Naruto had never given any indication that he was upset, even as he was always near the sidelines napping or gazing into the forest near their mansion.

Minato was surprised by the sheer lack of detailed encounters with his eldest little bundle of sunshine. It seemed off to him, but he realized that his daughters monopolized his time spent fathering with his family. Glancing up at Inu standing idle to allow him his time to think, he had to wonder what this was all about. Had Naruto done something to humiliate the man? Was he turning into his mother? As a father, it was very unappealing to think that his boy was off causing trouble, even if it might have been his own fault for neglecting to keep an eye on him. Steeling himself, he was prepared to feel the shame of failure as he asked the question that any parent dreaded.

"What has the boy done?"

Inu was visibly taken by surprise as his entire body seemed to blanch, "Excuse me, Hokage-sama?"

"Clearly there is a problem if one of my best ANBU and closest friends is asking for a demotion. I want to know what Naruto has done that brought this on so that I can deal with it as soon as possible. Was it some sort of prank? Did he notice one of your team and taunt them? Whatever it is, he should know better, he is the son of the Hokage for crying out loud." Minato replied, rubbing his brow and grinning a little in embarrassment.

Behind his mask Inu was utterly thrown for the proverbial loop. It was obvious to the casual observations of Team Ro that the Namikaze family often ignored Naruto, going so far as to leave him behind when venturing into the village for outings. Minato was assuming that Naruto was the cause of some great offense. Surely he knew enough about his own son, _his eldest child_ , to know the boy was an absolute angel… right? All of the Namikaze triplets had their own little quirks, but they were damned good kids. Akane was a spitfire with a temper that rivaled her mother's, but she had a good heart and believed firmly in family. Mito was a bit of an introvert, but when she did open up one would be hard pressed to find a more loyal friend. And then there was Naruto… his eyes were always wandering, gazing beyond the surface to peer beneath the mundane and tear away at the shallow illusions of reality… but there was no kinder, gentler soul in the miserable shinobi world that had been rooted in darkness for millennia unknown.

A slight clearing of his leader's throat brought Inu back to reality where he had been standing silent for a moment longer than he should have. Minato was eyeing him warily, searching for any hint that he was ill or… something worse. Inu found his barings and stood tall before speaking clearly,

"Hokage-sama, Naruto-kun has done nothing to provoke my ire or shame my person or my team. In fact, though we are forbidden to interact with him directly, my team has grown very fond of him in the years we have been charged with protecting you and yours. My request to retire from ANBU is more personal than professional. I wish to walk among the village as me, come out of the shadows, and embrace the boy as a friend. You and Kushina have always been accepting of me, and I would show that affection back openly for a time, and get to know the little one who I have grown to view as a little brother. I have seen him spend a great deal of time alone…" Here, Inu nearly had to pause due to an overwhelming desire to growl out the words, "…and I would see that change, and perhaps introduce him to some of my fellow shinobi, or some children his own age."

"I see… and what of Akane and Mito?" Minato replied without missing a beat, which caught Inu off guard.

The masked man regained his composure quickly enough, "Excuse me, Hokage-sama?"

Irritated that he would have to repeat himself, Minato let his ire waver as he indulged the man, "I asked what of my other children, Akane-chan and Mito-chan? You spoke of taking time to connect with Naruto, but you never mentioned the others. Am I to assume that you would favor one, and not the others?"

Inu's eye narrowed behind his mask, but that would go unseen by his leader who was currently leaned back in his rather uncomfortable looking chair and gazing with calculating eyes back at his subordinate, "May I speak freely, Hokage-sama?"

Minato gave him a dismissive wave, "Go on."

"I did not extend my offer to your daughters because more attention is the last thing the two of them need." Inu replied flatly, with an almost finality to his tone that shocked Minato, if only momentarily.

Ever the concerned father, Minato leaned forward on his arms and gave Inu his best glare, though on the perpetually kind-hearted Namikaze it was very out of place, almost laughable, "I do not like the tone that you are using, Kakashi. Obviously I won't hold you liable, but permission or not that was a bit harsh."

With all pretenses of professionalism thrown to the wind, the now exposed Kakashi pulled the mask from his face to reveal… another mask that concealed a generous portion of his face from view. Due to the warmth of the mask and the moisture in the village his face slightly glimmered in the light of the office as fresh sweat brought on by his flustered irritation blazed trails down his right temple. What hair wasn't performing miracles was matted down from the condensation that had accumulated during his hours of maintaining the uniform that he was currently attempting to abandon. His usual lazy eye was still drooping, though it was clear that he wasn't pleased with where their conversation had gone over the past several minutes.

"Sometimes the truth hurts, Minato, and the truth of the matter is that those two girls are being thoroughly spoiled, whether you want to acknowledge it or not. They are wonderful kids, don't assume I am trying to speak badly of them, but the two of them are doted on nearly every hour of the day. I am making this request because I wish to give _him_ someone, _anyone,_ who cares enough to give him the time of day. Mito and Akane have been, are, and will always be just fine, I have no doubt about that… I worry for Naruto. The both of us know what happened to another young boy who was suddenly left all alone with practically no one to turn to. I don't want that for him." Kakashi stood firm before the man who had become a second father to him, the sensei who had brought him together with the two most important people of his life… the man he trusted to lead and protect his people.

Minato sat back slowly as his eyes closed, and even as he seemed relaxed, his mind was buzzing about like a bat out of hell. He'd never seen Kakashi speak with such passion about anything for a very long time… if ever. The idea that he and his wife were spoiling their daughters was laughable at best. The two of them needed all the love that they could provide in order to fight off the influence of the demon sealed in them. There was no "too much" when their lives, as well as the lives of everyone in Konoha, were in jeopardy every time one of them was ever even the slightest bit unhappy. There was just too much riding on his daughters' safety and happiness for him to consider… no, it was necessary, and that was nonnegotiable.

As for Naruto, the boy had never given him any cause for concern before, so why would he be so hasty in removing one of his finest shinobi from their post to play big brother every other week. The man would be a Special Jonin, which meant missions outside of the village that would often take weeks, maybe months! The idea that he would do such a thing only to break his own promise to spend time with the boy almost seemed like Kakashi was aiming to toy with Naruto, and it was this thought that worried Minato more than anything. What if that were true… what if Kakashi's real aim was to cause the boy distress? What would the end game be? Could Kakashi be under the control of that man…?

Minato sat forward once again feeling satisfied with his musings, "Unfortunately, Kakashi, I cannot fulfill your request at this time. Due to your time in ANBU you would need to undergo several weeks of assessments with Psychoanalysts to determine if you are fit for duty among the rank and file shinobi. Add onto that your need to keep up with lower ranked, long term assignments as a Special Jonin, and your entire reasoning for the request falls apart. If you care so much for the boy's well being, then you would do well to remain with ANBU for the foreseeable future to keep him safe. Arrangements can be made should you desire to pursue this further, but I will say this right now… I will not allow any sort of unnecessary favoritism in my home. Everyone gets what they need, nothing more and nothing less, are we clear?"

Kakashi's eye narrowed as he listened to the bull crap excuse given to him, _'Unnecessary favoritism… is he outright mocking my intelligence, or does he really not see what he is doing? Just because a child does not whine, that does not mean they do not need. Naruto…'_

"I understand… _Hokage-sama_ …"

* * *

The sun was well into the sky over Konoha and the village proper was buzzing with life. Of the Great Five villages, Konoha housed the largest civilian population and by proxy held the greatest number of trade agreements outside of the National Capitals. The constant flow of trade brought many people to the village, and often times one could be consumed in the crowds bustling to and fro down the lanes of the Market District. Security was an issue, and often times people without proper paperwork were outright denied entry, and punishment for forcing the issue ranged from the proverbial wrist slap, to the very literal visit to Torture and Interrogation.

Due to such risks, the Market District had always been as far from the Clan District as possible to ensure the village elite could enjoy privacy. Each clan had private land set aside for everything they needed, even clan-only weapons and supply shops, though the only clan to flaunt such prosperity was the Uchiha clan. Outside of the Clans' precious walls, old parks and recreation areas had long since been abandoned to time, allowing them to overgrow and further keep straying visitors away due to the assumption that they had wandered close to a slum. There was a time when the Senju Clan, the most prestigious and well respected of the founding clans, had seen fit to keep such public parks maintained, but their sole heir had abandoned the village long enough ago for their accounts in the village to be frozen, and all of their former assets had fallen to ruin.

One such park, the name forgotten to time due to a lack of interest, was located near the western side of the Clan District, the tall trees helping to block the sight of the perimeter wall from view. Grass was tall, nearly waist high in areas with direct sunlight. The many trees had been left to overgrow and their branches created an intricate canopy of webs that prevented proper movement for shinobi. What was once a beautiful koi pond with a stone bridge connecting the northern and southern edges was now a mere shadow of its former self. Questionable green substances gave the water an eerie, unhealthy look, and if one were to look close enough they might see strange shadows disturbing the dark depths of the pond. The gardens that had at some time been full of lush flowerbeds were the hunting ground of stray cats, the rat infestation ruining the area with holes and piles of rotted garbage.

Standing near what might be the center of the park was a little blonde boy no older than five or six, his eyes looking around with wonder. He was dressed in his usual forest camouflage shorts, ninja sandals, and forest green shirt, though now his shirt had a symbol sewn into the back. Instead of an Uzumaki swirl, or a leaf symbol, or the infamous Uchiha fan, this was no formal clan marking. The patch was round and designed with small threads of many colors to depict a weeping willow growing out of a small piece of earth and surrounded by brightly colored, clean water. The many curtains of leaves ranged from the common dull green, to very vibrant reds like the leaves of autumn in Nations further north. This boy was Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto, and he had only one thought on his mind as he eyed the severly dilapidated public park…

' _This place looks like hell.'_

Looking over his right shoulder, he eyed a beautiful glowing orb of bright white light with what one could only assume was a tiny woman barely visible beyong the sillouette of her slender shape. Smiling, he tried to find the right way to ask his next question without either insulting the little woman or making himself feel like an idiot.

"Obaa-chan, what… what are we doing here, again?"

The little woman chuckled lightly with a small voice that resembled wind chimes in a summer breeze, "Naru-chan, did you forget all ready? Sometimes I wonder where your mind goes."

Naruto had enough wherewithal to look indignant, "Hey, I'm not that bad!"

Aingeal, his recently discovered pseudo-grandmother, responded with a flat tone, "Seventeen times."

Naruto looked away from her with a dark blush on his angry, puffed up cheeks. That had been a reference to his very long night trying to channel chakra into the Summoning Contract that the fairies had him sign. Being so young it was impressive enough that he had accessed his chakra in the first place, but it would have been ridiculous if he had been able to channel it properly without instructions. His knowledge was limited to the lectures his parents had given to Akane and Mito over several weeks, and those had been halted due to his sisters' lack of ability. Naruto had asked for them to repeat their instructions on how to manipulate the chakra in his body several times… seventeen apparently. To say that he was embarrassed about it would be an understatement.

Sensing she had put Naruto in a bad mood, Aingeal sighed before reaching a tiny hand up to pat him on the cheek, "Aww, I'm sorry Naru-chan… you did really well. Most humans we have observed take several weeks in the academy to access their chakra, and you are all ready able to move it through your system. I was only teasing, please forgive me?"

Naruto looked back at her and groaned as he could tell from her posture she was using the puppy eyes on him. She was sitting on her knees with her little hands clasped on her chest, her head tilted ever so slightly to the side. A lesser boy would have crumbled… and Naruto wasn't doing much better. Still, he didn't outright gush and forgive her like a weak minded man. He put on an aloof air to try and play coy, "Well… okay, Obaa-chan, I forgive you. Now please, why are we here again? I thought you said today you would be helping me learn some things."

Aingeal stood up and performed a small twirl before floating up in front of him, her wings a blur of light behind her back as she gestured toward the messy park, "This will be where you train both your human abilities and your fairy powers, little Naru-chan."

"This… looks like a place where I might need shots after leaving." As if to emphasize his point, the distant echo of rusty metal grinding in the depths of the park echoed on a passing breeze.

She floated back over to his shoulder before relaxing with her legs hanging down and crossing regally, "As you grow into a young man, and a proper fairy, you will work your body and mind. Each morning, after your stamina exercises, you will come here and work to clean this place. In doing so you will work your body, become stronger, and your connection with nature will strengthen as you revitalize this forgotten paradise. This will be your home, your classroom, your training field… anything that you need, it will provide. This is what it means to be one of the fairy folk, giving back to nature twice what we take away."

Naruto listened to Aingeal as he took a few tentative steps into the tall grass. As her instruction ended he felt his foot catch on resistance. Reaching down he wrenched an old sake bottle from the thick grass, inadvertently ripping up several pieces of the grass in the process. He cringed at the sight of the unhealthy looking dirt clumped around the grass roots. Looking up it was hard to imagine that the park wasn't a barren wasteland, but perhaps he wasn't seeing the bigger picture. He walked over to a tree and let his small hand brush against the healthy bark. He couldn't help but smile when he felt an odd warmth coming from the old tree that he would have sworn ought not to be there.

"Obaa-chan, do you really think I can clean this place up? Shouldn't the others come and see to this?" Naruto felt her shifting on his shoulder, presumably to look his way.

When she spoke her voice was gentle, "Of course I do, Naru-chan. You have the light of my son and daughter, and a warm heart to guide that light toward a bright future full of life and love. This will be your place to learn and grow, and I have complete faith that by the time you graduate from the human academy you will be prepared, and this beautiful park will be restored to her former beauty."

A fire burned in his eyes as he looked up into the bright blue sky and spoke with conviction and determination, "Hai, I will make this place beautiful again, and I will make you proud of me, Obaa-chan!"

* * *

Standing a ways off to the side and concealed in shadow was an ANBU watching little Naruto as he held a strange one-sided conversation with a butterfly that seemed content to rest on his shoulder. This particular ANBU wore the standard uniform, though unlike most they wore a customized medium length blade strapped to their back. Their mask was feline, and their visible hair was a beautiful violet color not often seen within Konoha's mighty walls. Judging by the telling shape of their body, the ANBU was most likely a she, though the most elite ANBU often concealed their true gender using clever illusions or modified body armor. Her eyes scanned the area briefly and she used a subtle low-level sensor technique to make sure no one else was nearby. It wouldn't detect anyone too powerful, but if there was someone that strong in the village that meant ill will toward the boy they would have no doubt pounced on him all ready.

Sensing no one, she settled into a more relaxed position for her little stake out. With Kakashi, or Inu while on duty, taking the night shirt she was forced to work throughout the day. She didn't mind this kind of work usually, and it was especially pleasant keeping an eye on such a good kid, but she would much rather be spending time perfecting her sword skills with her lover. Between her blade, and the man, she had no room in her heart for any other passions… besides the occasional stick of dango. Oh, she was a very loyal and skilled kunoichi and she would never betray her people… she just didn't have the drive to do any more than she was ordered unless it involved her two most passionate desires. To be coveted, and have her skills acknowledged, by the man she unashamedly admitted was her soul mate, however juvenile the notion may be.

Her eyes drifted to her charge after having been lost in her musings for Kami knows how long, and then they widened slightly. Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto, son of the Forth Hokage, heir to the Namikaze Clan… was cleaning up the garbage laying about in the old, abandoned park. Of course she was aware that Naruto was different, the good kind of course, but different nonetheless. Unlike many boys his age he rarely put up a fuss or started fights, and he was very quiet, almost as quiet as the little Hyuga princess that was often glued to the leg of her mother. Still, the boy was royalty among the village, even if no one seemed to remember him, so for him to be performing such manual labor was damn shocking. Had she been a lesser ANBU she might have dashed away to report this to his father, or one of the elders… but she was no ordinary yes-man ANBU. She was a member of Team Ro, serving directly under Inu, the Hokage's Living Shadow. Inu had ordered that any odd behavior be reported to him and only him, unless directly ordered by the Hokage to inform him of his son's recent activities. The team respected the dog masked man more than their duty to the village, and so none of them would go against his orders, no matter how wrong it was.

The lady ANBU pulled a small pad of paper from her tool pouch to jot down the time and place, as well as a brief description of Naruto's activities. Inu would need to know the boy was up to something, even if it seemed like innocent village beautification.

* * *

The day had gone by quickly for Naruto as he picked up garbage and filled large bags, given to him by a very helpful little fairy under orders from Aingeal, that he organized into neat piles near the edge of the park. It was tough work, but he was an Uzumaki by blood and that gave him an abundance of stamina, though he would never truly be able to keep up with his sisters. Oddly, as the day wore on and the park became less and less cluttered with loose trash and debris from past bad weather, he could almost feel something around his body… warmth. He had asked Aingeal, who had spent the day lounging on his shoulder and giving him simple lectures on spelling and grammar, and she vaguely hinted that he would be learning more about that at a later time. Being a naïve child he accepted her words, accepted that this was simply how it would be, and continued on until the sun was low in the afternoon sky.

With a small sigh he wiped away the sweat on his brow and sank to his bum in the overgrown grass. Taking a deep breath he smiled as he realized there was a new, fresh scent that hadn't been there before. Aingeal noticed his contented smile and couldn't help but giggle at his adorable little face. Eyeing the fairy out of the corner of his eye he wondered what she found so funny, but decided not to comment on it. She must have noticed him spying on her because she stood up and walked over to his cheek to gently pat it, her lips formed into a smirk, though he wouldn't be able to see that on her glowing little body.

"Sorry little one, I just couldn't help admiring how cute my grandbaby is." She had intentionally used a very grandmotherly tone to add to her teasing words.

Like any boy who was eager to grow up and be acknowledged as a man, he responded in the most mature fashion: sticking his tongue out at her, "Neh, I'm not cute, Obaa-chan! And I am not a baby anymore!"

"Oh, my little cutie, you'll never stop being grandma's little baby boy. So… get over it." Aingeal rubbed her small hand in circles around his little cheek, even giving the baby fat there a light squeeze.

Naruto blushed at her adoring words and absolutely embarrassing show of familial affection, "Obaa-chan~!"

Hearing him whine was music to her mischievous, prankster ears, "Okay, okay, I'll stop… for now. You should head home, Naruto-chan. Be sure to clean up before you eat anything, and if you have time then change into something nice for dinner. You are the son of both the Hokage and a prince, you need to look the part."

Naruto drooped a little, "Do I have to? I mean, it's not like I am going out to eat or something… and no one is supposed to be visiting either."

The fairy queen let out a small sigh before flying up in front of his face. He couldn't see her face, but the pose she struck with her little hands on her hips and her back hunched forward a little told him enough. He was about to be told off.

"Naruto, you are a prince in two separate worlds, whether you are treated as such or not, and as your grandmother I will not tolerate laziness and bad manners. You will wash your hands and face, comb that mane of yours, and put on something comfortable, yet respectable, before you attend dinner. I want this to become a habit. No more hiding in the shadows and allowing others to ignore you. I can accept the humans who share your blood because… because you have an understanding of their situation that I have yet to fully accept. But others will not be allowed to outright look passed a child who shares my light, oh no. I will unleash a furious storm of misfortune on them so swift and unyielding that even the chaos gods will attempt to stop me."

Noticing the fire suddenly forming where there would probably be two tiny eyes on his grandmother's face he felt the need to run. Instead he gently pulled the raging woman into his hands before pulling her into his chest, "Obaa-chan, please calm down ok? I can't help people ignoring me, it's just how it is. I don't want you causing trouble to innocent people."

Aingeal struggled a little, but eventually she slumped in defeat with her head resting on her palm, and her elbow propped on his arm, "Oh fine… spoil my fun. Soon enough your fairy instincts will kick in and you'll be begging me to help you prank these humans."

Naruto chuckled light heartedly before making sure he had all his things, and then he left the park toward the Namikaze compound. The walk was peaceful, serene, even as several loud and excitable groups of young Genin and Academy Students who took afternoon classes wandered about, each gravitating toward this compound or that. He noticed energetic Inuzuka clan members running full tilt toward their home with hounds hot on their tails. He had always favored those rough ninjas for their fun-loving and loyal attitudes, and their competitive spirit that helped motivate them to become better and better at what they did. Unfortunately, he had never been introduced to any of them, even their leader, the wild beauty he was almost sure was named Tsume, whom visited their home at least twice with a little boy he assumed was her son. Mito and Akane were probably at least aware of that boy, but considering he never heard them speaking about him he felt safe to assume they weren't friends.

It was inevitable and unavoidable for Naruto to not pass by the intimidating walls of the Hyuga compound. From observations he had made around his own home, and among the Hyuga that graced the village market, he knew most of them were very quiet. In fact, if he heard their voices in a room full of people he would never be able to identify any of them, and with his observational skills that was impressive. He was vaguely aware of two young Hyuga close to his age, but beyond that he had been left in the dark. Mumbles of a princess among them were common place, but obviously no one would refer to her name out of respect for her position among the powerful and enigmatic clan. While passing by he made sure to maintain eye contact with the ground, just to be sure he wasn't very noticeable, and once he had vanished around the corner he let loose a sigh of relief. He would never know that he was being watched the entire time by the two stationed guards by the large gate, and they would never know how their legs had wound up caught in mysterious vines of poison ivy.

Naruto found the Namikaze home as peaceful as usual, the back yard a mess of discarded throwing weapons and crushed grass. Instead of using the back door and possibly causing trouble, he walked straight up the path leading from the main road to the front door. He placed his small hand on the door gently and waited a few moments for the seal to acknowledge him. To the outside observer it would seem nothing had happened, but a trained ninja would have felt the small pulse of chakra stored into the locking seal as the door opened to admit the boy inside. Wasting no time at all he walked in and discarded his sandals by the door. He noticed the messy grass covered sandals of his sister Akane right next to the obscenely clean set owned by Mito, and he couldn't help smiling. He loved those two, even if they did often forget that he was around.

He left the doorway for the stairs leading to the upper floor. The familiar sound of his sisters moving around in their rooms caused his smile to grow. Yes, he was often alone and overlooked, but just hearing their excited voices and the obvious clumsy movements they often made while playing in their rooms reminded him that he wasn't alone, at least not physically. He wasn't sure why, but he had memories from the past that were far more vivid than they should be. They were simple pictures really, and basic emotions, but they were so clear. The three of them had been much closer when they were little, well littler anyway, and sometimes when he thought about that it made him a little sad. One of his clearest memories was a moment he shared with Mito, though he was unaware of just when it had been.

That day had been cold, much colder than Konoha was supposed to be. Kushina had been out with them, and a freak rainstorm had hit while she was pushing them through the village on her normal visit through the market. It took longer than she had thought to wheel her troupe back to the compound, and the triplets had been soaked. Like a dutiful mother she gave them all a warm bath before drying them good to try and avoid them getting sick. Akane had pulled through easily, and so had little Naruto, but Mito… she was very ill. Her body got much warmer than it was supposed to, and she couldn't stop crying. Being a common cold, their mother knew that nothing would help her except rest and plenty of liquids. Naruto had slipped by his absent minded parents who were occupied with their worries over Mito, and soon enough her crying ceased. Alarmed, Minato and Kushina rushed to Mito's side, only to find her resting peacefully, albeit with a little red face, in the arms of her big brother.

With plenty of fluids, a lot of love, cool wraps, and the undivided attention of her big brother, Mito pulled through like a little trooper, and soon enough she was back to being a hyper little angel. Naruto's attempts to be close to her after that were thwarted by their diligent mother constantly coddling her day in and day out, which ultimately led to both of his sisters fading away. That didn't mean Naruto stopped looking after them, but he knew not to bother getting any closer to them. It was just how things ended up, and there was no point making a big fuss about it, especially when his cries went unheard. With time he realized that they didn't need him with Kushina's constant diligence, and so he admired them from afar with proud eyes, always cheering them on silently and hoping they were happy.

Reaching the hallway bathroom he walked inside and immediately removed his sweaty, dirt caked clothes to place them in the wicker hamper by the door. He looked at his reflection in the mirror the best he could, though if he didn't stand a few feet away from the sink he could only see the top of his spiky, unruly golden hair. Obviously he didn't see any difference after only a single day, but he could day dream about what he might look like in a few years. He could tell he would be thin like his father, though his face would most certainly be round like his mother, along with her natural tan and almond shaped eyes. He'd be taller than his sisters and his mother, and maybe taller than his dad too! If he worked properly he would shoot for a swimmer's body type, nothing like the sickly thin shinobi and kunoichi who often retired as Genin after three or so years.

He walked over to the bath to get a shower going, happy to see that no one had wandered in and adjusted the shower head when he wasn't looking again. After steam filled the room he stepped in and felt the first layer of grime simply melt away, and he let out a cute little sigh of relief. Remembering his fairy grandmother's orders he made the shower a quick affair so he would have time to dress properly. Thankfully no one disturbed him this time so he was able to get in and out in under ten minutes, and with a large towel wrapped around his shoulders like a cloak he ran to his room to avoid being seen, as well as the slight chill of the air. Whether Akane or Mito actually looked at him or not, he most certainly didn't want any girls, especially his _sisters_ , to see his bits in any way, shape, or form.

His bedroom door was closed and locked in no time affording him a chance to relax, though he knew he had only about ten more minutes before his family sat down for their evening meal. He could hear his sisters heading back downstairs, no doubt cleaned and dressed in their casual house clothes after a long day of training. He did a small maneuver that he liked to call a 'shimmy shake' which involved several rub downs with his towel before he hopped over to his dresser to throw on one of the nice sets of clothing that his grandmother had given him as a gift. It took nearly five minutes alone to decide on what to wear, mostly because he had almost no idea how any of it went on, but with his bundle of clothes set on his bed he got to work.

* * *

Downstairs, Mito and Akane were both seated at the dining room table with their legs swinging beneath them in a strange pendulum of impatience. As per the norm, the two of them were dressed according to their personalities. Akane, ever the tomboy, had opted for a simple pair of black leggings and an oversized orange t-shirt, though the shirt had a very cute cat-pastry hybrid spewing rainbows on the chest to betray her inner girl. Mito was wearing a black flared skirt with a plain white blouse, a set of bracelets hanging loosely from her left wrist, and a small locket fastened around her neck. She never let anyone know what was in the locket, but whatever it was she cared a great deal for the small trinket and nearly never left it anywhere, except during training.

Kushina was busying her hands in the kitchen preparing dinner for her boisterous little ones, and enjoying their little grunts of annoyance whenever she brought in something that they weren't allowed to touch yet. Her meals, while delicious, were a bit standardized almost to the point of becoming bland, though she had yet to hear any complaints. Due to Akane's and Mito's enhanced metabolism, large meals were required to sate their hunger. This, topped with her own legendary appetite and a strong, virile man to feed, and she needed meals that were easy to prepare, could be made in large quantities, and provided all of the basic essentials. That in mind lead to many, many bowls of ramen, plenty of rice, lots of steamed vegetables, and the occasional large pot of miso soup.

Minato, being the wise man he often claimed to be, had never once complained about her cooking, even when she was all too aware of her poor skills at the start of their relationship. Instead, he chose the high road and offered to take the family out to eat at least once a week to break the monotony. Currently, the man in question had just arrived in the family sitting room with a burst of yellow light. The chakra pulse alerted Kushina to his arrival, so she hurried into the dining room with the final pot of food to place down before her husband could walk in. It was a sort of game the two had silently initiated after so many times trying to beat the other to the finish first. Minato walked into the dining room wearing a knowing smirk that only his beloved wife could see, and then he walked to her side to peck her cheek. The kiss was a simple thing, but it sent small shocks through her body with the promise of what was to come later on after their children were tucked in for the night.

"You win again, love." Minato spoke huskily into her ear, making sure their excitable little ones wouldn't overhear.

Kushina batted her eye lashes at him sweetly, "As if you had a chance, Minato-kun."

The two of them shared a chuckle before the red-head lead her husband to his seat, knowing he would insist on getting distracted from their meal if he got out of her sight. By then he had submitted to her guidance with a defeated sigh escaping his smiling lips. There really was no negotiating anything with Kushina, even if the world were on fire. The younger men called him whipped, but his own generation knew better and often called him a lucky bastard. As soon as he was sat down properly he could feel the built up energy burst from his daughters when the inevitable storm of questions surged into him, like the proverbial tidal wave crashing into the shore.

Akane was first to assault her father with unrivalled enthusiasm, "Tou-san! What did you have to do at work today? You save any princesses? You beat up any monsters? Find a really cool, ancient sword that talks and kills vampires?!"

Minato laughed with quite literal sweat drops running down his cheek, "Take it easy, Akane-chan, being Hokage isn't about going out on quests. It is a serious position that requires me to be here, alert, and always keeping both eyes on every shinobi both in and out of the village."

"That sounds boring~" Akane whined while slouching back in her chair and staring blankly at the ceiling.

Mito chose this moment to interject while eyeing her sister with a sly grin, "Guess that means I will be the next Hokage easy then…"

Kushina and Minato felt the room grow cold before Akane looked over at Mito with a mechanical slowness, "Excuse me… nee-chan? You just say you would be the next Hokage?"

"Well you said it was boring… guess that means there won't be any competition." Mito replied casually, her little hands holding both sides of a warm cup of tea that her mother had just given her.

Minato had just snapped his hand out to grab the back of Akane's shirt as the feisty girl fought to get at her sister, "I'm gonna be Hokage _way_ before you, cherry!"

" _ **Cherry?!**_ " Mito asked while her hair practically caught flame, "You take that back, or I'll kick your butt _Angry Child._ "

Minato sighed as he watched Mito have to be held back by her mother much the same way he was keeping Akane held back while she yelled angrily, "You two need to calm down right now, you hear me?"

This was the scene that the last member of the Namikaze household entered the room to. Naruto had taken his time getting dressed in order to figure out how each part fit, and he was pleased with how well his grandmother had judged his size. He was sporting a very smart white Tangzhuang suit coat with a golden dragon sewn into the fine silk that wove down from the mandarin collar and through the sets of knotted buttons down the front. On the back was sewn a patch similar to his training tee representing the fairy hollow in the willow tree. Matching pants colored black completed the ensemble giving him a slightly formal look that was still comfortable for wearing around the house. His feet were wrapped in white bandages and fitted with a pair of black slippers. All together, he was a handsome little man, and if Aingeal had not needed to return to the hollow he was sure she would have been cooing into his ear relentlessly about how he would grow up to be a heart throb like his fathers.

As was the norm he felt none of the eyes in the room focus on him for more than a half second, but that suited him just fine. He had promised to keep the existence of the fairies a secret until he was old enough to protect himself, so he really didn't want to explain where he found his new clothes. Oh, he could play it off by telling them he had received them as a gift, but that might bring about more questions. The quality of the silk was too good to attempt a lie about buying them with the non-existent allowance he was given, and he most certainly did not want his family thinking he had stolen from the village. Attention was the last thing he needed at the moment, so for the first time in his young life, he was grateful for his sister's bickering. He took his place at the table just as Akane had been calmed down, and Mito was finally absent the red glow that had enveloped her cheeks.

Minato took in a cleansing breath to release his tension before returning to his meal, only to stop as he caught sight of his son. Normally he wouldn't have focused on the boy, but the conversation with Kakashi that morning had stirred his curiosity. Of course he hadn't let it effect his daily routine, but now that the boy was right in front of him Kakashi's request came to the forefront of his mind. He took in the clothes Naruto was wearing with fascination. The style was obviously foreign, though he could see certain aspects in the clothes some of the women in the village wore, particularly several kunoichi who were more in tune with fashion than their shinobi counter-parts. It gave him a look of sophistication and class that his home lacked, even though he held such a high position in the village. Looking over to his little girls and their neat, yet very casual dress, he wondered why Naruto had chosen to dress up like this. How long had he been dressing like this? He would have to speak with Kakashi and his team as soon as they arrived for their nightly assignments.

While Akane recovered from the spat rather quickly, Mito was one to hold a grudge when someone insulted her hair. Unlike her self-conscious mother, she loved her hair to death and always prided herself on keeping it clean, cute, and on display. She was in no way vain, but she was proud of her Uzumaki red hair, and to honor her clan she wouldn't let anyone mess with it. Stewing over the recent altercation with her _little_ sister she decided to keep her eyes facing away from the girl. It was due to this that she found her eyes lingering on her big brother for longer than normal, and her cheeks flared up as a consequence. With his hair half tamed, and those new clothes, he was actually a very handsome boy. He reminded her of a prince from a story book, and all little girls had little fantasies about heroic princes coming to their rescue. It was silly of course, especially with her aspirations to think about, but she was just a child and had every right to behave like one if she wanted to. She watched him eat quietly, using his chop sticks with ease, which was something that surprised her since he was supposed to be a messy boy.

Naruto was well aware of eyes boring holes into him, but he preferred to keep his eyes averted and simply finish his meal. He stuck to the rice, vegetables, and a small portion of soup, avoiding the ramen so that his sisters would have more of their favorite dish. He knew it was spoiling them to allow them more of the unhealthy noodle dish, but this was the closest he could come to doting on his sisters and he found a small amount of joy in the allusion. The little smile on his lips at the thought didn't go unnoticed by his watchers, but he wouldn't know that. In no time at all his food was finished, and his dishes were assembled neatly in front of him while he sat quietly. Allowing a set amount of time to pass before he left had become a habit since his earliest memories being aware of his place in the family. It was a waiting game really, one that he never won simply because he could wait forever and never hear his name called.

Minato had kept eating, albeit slowly due to distraction; he was less interested in the food and much more interested in the small blonde sitting to his right. Naruto had finished eating before anyone else and seemed content even though he had only consumed a small, single serving. That was normal, even if he was a growing boy, but for him to sit quietly was abnormal. Children were constantly in motion, always making noise, and never satisfied until their energy was depleted. It was unrealistic to believe he would have the same fire as his sisters considering their burden, but he was still a kid. Remembering the meeting with Kakashi that morning he had to wonder if the usually strict and professional ANBU had noticed this before and been keeping such odd behavior to himself. Minato's musings were cut suddenly when he realized that Naruto had stood up from his seat.

Feeling that he'd given them enough time, and seeing the animated conversation between Kushina and Akane dominating the dinner table, Naruto conceded it was clear tonight wouldn't be the night. He left his dishes in a neat pile for cleanup, walked over to his mother and whispered a thank you that only his two watchers could hear, before finally retreating from the group to go back to his bedroom. The first few times he had waited at dinner for someone to ask him about his day had been rather disappointing affairs. It took him some time to put together, but eventually he chalked it up to the attention and care that his sisters needed for their supposed illness. It became easier after his revelations, but no matter how much he told himself that this was simply the norm, he couldn't shake the desire to be talked to, acknowledged by the humans he considered his family. At least it didn't hurt anymore, at least he had the puzzle in front of him to explain why things were the way they were.

Back with the rest of his family Minato had set his food aside half eaten as a small ache formed in the pit of his stomach. Sensing the distress from her husband, Kushina let her voice die down before facing her blonde lover, "Minato-kun, is something wrong with your dinner?"

"No… no, Kushina-chan, nothing is wrong with the food… Hey, honey, did you recently go clothes shopping for the kids?" Minato saw an opportunity to get some answers and possibly settle his distress.

Kushina smiled as she put on a cute thinking pose, "Ahh… I bought Mito-chan a new dress and new sandals for her training, and I had to replace Akane-chan's pony pajamas because of her recent accident."

While Akane let her head slam on the table in despair at her embarrassing moment being shared to the whole table, Mito was listening in and only frowned in confusion. Her mother hadn't mentioned her brother, though she was sure the clothes he was wearing looks brand new, "Kaa-san, what about Aniki?"

To Minato's surprise it took Kushina a moment to register just who her daughter was referring to, and in all honesty he was glad that Mito had asked before he did, because he might have become frustrated with her hesitation, "Oh, Naruto, no I didn't, he hasn't outgrown his clothes yet and he has always kept his things nice and neat, so I never need to replace anything."

That explanation soothed Mito and Minato both considering they were afraid the woman might have not cared enough to even consider him. That being said, there was still the matter of the clothes he had worn to dinner, so Minato pursued the issue a little further, "Are you sure? I don't recall having bought him any Tangzhuang style outfits, and as far as I know the kids' godparents haven't been by in a while."

"Tangzhuang?" Kushina let her mouth test the word a few times before she looked at her husband with a frown, "I'm not sure I've ever even heard of that before. When was he wearing it?"

Minato sighed and stood up from the table with a weight heavy on his shoulders, "Never mind it, Kushi-hime, I have to go take care of some work in my office before whatever is attacking my stomach gets the best of me. Afraid I might not be able to help with the clean up so I'll make it up to you, I promise. Wrap up a little something in case I feel better and get hungry, okay?"

Kushina could only nod as she watched the man circle the table to place a gentle kiss on her lips. The usual spark was there that reminded her how much she loved him, but there was clearly something off with the Yellow Flash. She would use her womanly charms to seduce the problem out of him later on if he tried to keep her out of the loop. After he left the room she turned to look at her daughters expecting gleeful smiles and excited chatter, instead she found both of them looking sedate, and confused. Akane was looking at Mito with worried eyes, clearly concerned with her slightly older sister. Mito seemed in another world as her eyes stared unblinking at the empty seat across from her and Akane. Following the gaze, Kushina spotted a cluster of neatly arranged dishes, all obviously used recently, and situated perfectly so that they could be gathered with ease.

' _Are those Naruto's?'_

* * *

Minato entered his private study before pulsing his chakra in a code to summon his ANBU. The night shift of Team Ro seemed to appear out of the shadows, and only their leader was still on his feet. All together there were three, though the only one with a visible mask was his most trusted ANBU, Inu. The dog-masked man was standing a foot in front of his subordinates with only his head bowed toward their Hokage, his fist held to his chest in a standard salute. Minato had his back turned to them while he leaned on the back wall, his hand clamped onto a dark stained wood shelf decorated with several family photos. Without turning away from the photographs, he spoke low and clear to emphasize his serious mood.

"Inu."

Said man looked up at the back of his leader with a sense of foreboding, "Hai, Hokage-sama?"

Minato turned toward them with a stern look that was poorly presented by the normally jovial man, "I need everything that you know about Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto, now."

* * *

 **Read, Review, Love, Laugh, Eat Ramen, Spank Your...**

 **Ahem... see you next time.**


	3. Chapter 3

"On a scale from one to ten this particular plan is probably a fifteen, if I do say so myself."

"Sure, you would say that… considering this whole thing was your idea, Obaa-chan."

As usual, the early morning sun was rising high over the eastern sky to usher in a new day for everyone down below in Konoha. The time was approximately fifty seven minutes passed seven and soon enough the many shops of the Market District would be opening their doors to let out the dust that had settled the previous night. Watching it was like watching a well oiled machine go about it's preset routine. As one, nearly every shop door would swing open and ring in the new day with chimes, bells, and the calls of neighborly greetings. It would take hardly a minute before the early shoppers would arrive to spend their well earned Ryo buying this bauble or that amenity. The economy of the Land of Fire was quite possibly the greatest in the world within the Elemental Nations and, besides the capital, Konohagakure lead the land's wealthy ascension with their wide array of trade goods, in no small way thanks to the many prosperous and skilled craftsmen both in and outside of the shinobi clans.

With no reason to worry, the many shops and stalls commenced as usual. The windows were opening up to let the light in with happy-go-lucky faces shining bright smiles through the clear panes. The trained ear could hear the rattling of several welcome signs turning to verify that shoppers were permitted to come and spend, spend, spend! Time seemed to slow down as locks clicked open, and door handles turned. Rusty metal groaned here and there, while the slight vacuum of some enclosed shops releasing an unfelt pressure sent a breeze rushing in or out. Yes, it was a beautiful day for nothing out of the ordinary to get in the way of everyone's beloved daily routine. Everyone would be sorely disappointed.

Up and down the streets several things happened all at once that brought the peaceful air crashing down into chaos. As each door opened and cheerful shop owners prepared their monotonous calls of hello or good morning, dozens of small explosions went off in great clouds of rainbow colors. As the ensuing colorful catastrophe was underway, each of the vendors who had been preparing their stalls became drenched in colorful paints, the victims of water balloon that had appeared out of no where. With the clouds slowly rising or blowing away in the breeze, and the rubber balloons thoroughly dispensed, large banners unraveled over signs and shop windows with sayings like "Taste the Rainbow" over grocers, "Red-dy for War!" over weapons and armor shops sporting red dust or paint, and "All That Glitters!" over jewelry shops practically caked with glitter.

At first there was utter panic, but soon enough everyone joined together in laughter as each caught sight of their neighbors. The paint, glitter, dyed flower and other such weapons of mass pranking had been used in such a way that nothing of value in shops or on display in stalls had been damaged, and nothing had been stolen during the momentary black out either. With the security of their goods seen to, there was nothing to do but simply enjoy a good laugh with their neighbors and clean up the minimal mess that had been created. Of course vandalism was not something to take lightly, if the paint and dust were easy to clean and nothing had negatively effected their business, who were they to put up too much of a fuss? And none of the signs bore anything rude, threatening, or perverted, so there truly wasn't a reason to sound an alarm or involve the local security patrols.

A pair of two unseen pranksters sat watching the laughing people talk about the event with enthusiasm, and neither could contain their giggling. Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto lay on his back holding his sides as he tried to stifle the giggles from exposing their location to anyone down below. Beside him, his grandmother for the past year sat giggling away in her natural form, her bright white light shining brilliantly because of her mirth. It had been a long year, though for the two of them it had been one to remember. Keeping to her promise that day, Aingeal had never let Naruto be alone again. Like a second mother, she doted on him and saw to his every need while helping to nurture him into a humble and respectful young man. It wasn't always rainbows and kittens, but even when she had to set her tiny little foot down he was always willing and ready to accept the consequences for his misbehavior.

Each day had been spent preparing little Naruto for the life of a warrior prince both physically and mentally, and to the pride of the fairy folk he had made leaps and bounds in all fields of study and exercise. With his body developing slowly he had grown slightly taller, a little over average for other boys his age. With a healthy diet and plenty of work to be done back at his training park he had started to lose that little tummy of his, though Aingeal stressed that he should not be coerced into working to speed up the natural loss of baby fat in light of the danger of overworking his young body. With his growth, his loving grandmother had provided him with quality clothes to keep him looking respectable, though she encouraged him to wear the few outfits that his human family often provided to show the lot of them equal respect. Even if they often overlooked him and left him to his own devices, their continued support and care, and let it be known the word 'care' had often been used with sarcasm, was not to be forgotten.

Speaking of the changes in his wardrobe, his old shorts and shirt had been long discarded to the donation boxes at the local orphanage and replaced with a solid green a-shirt and baggy camouflage cargo pants. He'd been allowed to choose his own cloths on a rare outing with the family, and idly remembered his mother not even glancing at the bundle he had handed her while she cooed at his sisters in their new summer wear. Aingeal had questioned his change from shorts to pants, and his response had been simply 'I don't really like working in the tall grass with my legs getting itchy.' He'd also opted to switch from the normal blue shinobi sandals to a solid black to match his clothes better, or so he thought. At least he was avoiding any loud colors, unlike his feisty little sister Akane who found a strange obsession with the color 'kill me' orange.

Aingeal had provided several formal outfits for him to wear at dinner and on walks through the village proper. Oh, that had been quite an interesting development in his life. Shortly after his first full day of dressing to impress his father had taken him to the side to discuss his strange new wardrobe. This had been a slight oversight on Aingeal's part, and had required some very quick and careful thinking. The response the two of them gave Namikaze Minato had left him speechless.

" _Err, sorry Tou-sama, I forgot to ask… I got it from this weird guy in the market. I got a dis…discount? Yeah, a discount! I used my err… money from helping the elderly."_

Oh, that had been the lamest excuse ever written to be sure, but somehow it had left Minato blinking in surprise. Naruto had taken his silence as a sign that he had been dismissed and since then the two had never spoken again. He often noticed his father watching him out of the corner of his eye, but Minato being a Kage level ninja kept Naruto from catching the man outright. The cold distance was nothing new, so Naruto left it alone and allowed that which was be. Besides the odd conversation with his father there had been only one other occurrence and that too had been short lived.

Mito, the calmer and more mature of his two little sisters, had been keeping her eyes on him for reasons that he couldn't fathom. There were times when the girl seemed as if she were working herself up to something, only to blush and run away to rejoin their little sister in whatever loud and slightly obnoxious racket she was involved with. Naruto was used to the silence so it didn't bother him in the slightest that the girl seemed incapable of speaking to him. The blushing was the part he couldn't understand, and a small little voice in the back of his head told him time and time again that knowing would only be a pain. Aingeal had cautioned him to be wary of the girl for some reason, and he was more than willing to comply. He would let her sort out her own little issue and avoid forcing the issue and causing trouble for his family.

Kushina had remained completely oblivious to any of the changes in Naruto and the young blonde found that oddly comforting. Even through all the years of sitting on the sidelines and watching his family from beyond arm's reach, he loved them all. When he sat and thought about it his young mind was very limited with life experiences to voice his understanding with any sort of certainty. He figured that he only had the one family, and lots of families seemed different and lots more had problems. They hadn't mistreated him or left him to die, they just… got busy. Loneliness was not something to hate them for when their reasons were so justified. To say that Aingeal had been unhappy with his childish world view was an understatement, but in true Uzumaki fashion he wouldn't budge on the issue.

Naruto let his body relax once his laughter had subsided and his piercing blue eyes scanned the clouds above. It was one of his lazy days and Aingeal had decided to give him a lesson in pranking. At first Naruto found the whole thing to be a bit of a hassle, but with time he found the planning, trap building, and eventual execution to be a total blast. It was in his blood, in more ways than one it turned out. His human mother and father had been a couple of troublemakers in their youth, and according to Aingeal the fairy folk were notoriously mischievous in nature. Before he was allowed to participate though, the little woman had given him a long lecture about the importance of safety and proper planning. The Golden Rules of Fairy Tom-Foolery:

A prank must always be planned with humor and mischief, and never out of spite, anger, or revenge.

Those who are pranked must never be harmed in any way, especially the elderly and sickly.

Expecting mothers must never be caught in the crossfire of any prank regardless of the method or level of complexity.

The seven year old looked over at Aingeal with a big grin on his face, "Did you see their faces when the smoke cleared? I thought that one grocer was going to load his pants!"

"What did I tell you? Never underestimate the power of a good flour bomb and a few well placed paint balloons." Aingeal seemed to glow a little brighter as her voice took on a hint of pride.

Naruto sat up and rubbed the back of his head a little, "How did you get those paint balloons to pop up out of nowhere like that?"

Aingeal flew over to sit on his shoulder lightly, "Trade secret, Naru-chan. I'll teach you how when you're older."

"Shish kabob… how did I know you were gonna say that?" Naruto crossed his arms in a little angry pout that left Aingeal giggling lightly.

"Because that's what I always say when you ask about my special abilities. You must learn to crawl before you walk, walk before you run, and run before you fly. Short cuts are for cowards, and you are not a coward, are you Naruto?"

Naruto pumped his fist once with a firm grin and eyes full of determination, "No way! I will do whatever it takes to make you proud."

"I know you will, Naru-chan… and that's why today is the day you'll be going to the park to make some friends." Aingeal replied with an innocent tone while inspecting her suddenly intriguing finger nails.

Naruto drained of all color before his head fell forward in dark gloom, "Obaa-chaaaaaan~!"

Aingeal ignored his anime tears as she flew below his chin to lift his face with her little fingers, her wings fluttering more harshly from the exertion of lifting him from his self-imposed despair, "We talked about this the other day. You will not be walking around this village like some kind of invisible specter. I will not interfere with your human family strictly because they do not deserve my time or patience… however; their ignorance is no excuse to become some kind of socially inept, brooding, sociopath hell bent on proving something or getting revenge. You are a bright, beautiful boy with more potential than anyone your age, and you are going to make some friends and end this isolationist lifestyle of yours… or so help me, I will get Ana out here."

A year ago such large words and complicated sentences would have left the little blonde boy scratching his skull, but thanks to his grammar and reading lessons with Aingeal he was all too aware of what she was saying. It was true that he had been a bit of an isolationist, and doing so had clearly started turning him into an introvert. Meeting other people his age had always been difficult when everyone seemed to gravitate toward Mito and Akane. Even the young boys his age had been encouraged to engage with the girls as a means to surround them with healthy relationships. Having accepted such things long ago Naruto found the idea of pursuing friendships troublesome. What point would there be in meeting new and interesting kids if they would eventually be influenced to leave him for his little sisters? That kind of thinking could have led him down a darker path, and Aingeal had been adamant in her endeavors to thoroughly educate him and guide him toward the light.

Upon hearing her final threat a look of horror crossed his face, "C-c-come on, Obaa-chan… there isn't any reason to involve Ana…"

Aingeal let a small smirk play at her lips, though due to her natural glow it went unseen, much to her pleasure, "Ohh~? You know, it's been about… three months since her last visit. I'm sure she misses her little Naru-kun."

"P-please, don't joke around… she always starts yelling at me about everything! She's out to get me!" Naruto fell to his knees in a shameless attempt to beg.

Aingeal flew right up into his face and he could feel her very firm finger poking right at the tip of his nose causing him to sweat as each poke punctuated her words, "Then you will go to the park we talked about, meet some people your own age, and form lasting bonds. Are… we… clear?"

The little blonde swallowed a large lump in his throat before nodding rapidly, "Yosh! No problem! I swear! Lasting bonds, tons of friends, loads of fun… all of that!"

He could swear that he almost saw her face glaring accusingly at him, daring him to break and confess that he was lying, so when he heard her speak he felt immediate relief, "Good. You are way too young to be avoiding people and spending so much time alone. This is the problem with young people these days. They're all indoors messing around with fancy toys or those damn televisions and not outside playing. I remember when we fairy folk could hardly enter a park to maintain the trees and flowers without having to avoid the little ones rushing around, rough housing, playing wild games…"

Naruto's dead-pan expression went ignored as he listened to his little fairy grandmother rant about this and that. It seemed that even near-immortal beings grew old enough to complain about everything. Oddly enough, though he wasn't that interested in exactly what she was complaining about, it was nice to have her fretting over him. This is how things had been over the year and it made him truly… happy. Before he had been content, and in his ignorance he had assumed that was as good as it got. Now he understood the warmth that one could feel when surrounded by people who care about you. Aingeal had filled the role of loving grandmother quite well, going so far as to smother him with gifts, unhealthy snacks, and the occasional "old person lecture." There were dozens of fairies who kept a silent vigil over him each day. He knew none of their names, but knowing that he would always have someone close by who would do anything to keep him safe was remarkably touching to his young mind. And of course there was the ever lovable Ana. In her eyes he could never do anything properly and she would often scold him for his mistakes. Some would find her actions harsh, but it kept him level headed and aware that, prince, son of a kage, aspiring ninja, whatever… he was still a person who was responsible for his actions.

Shaking the lingering thoughts from his mind he finally waved a hand in front of her to stall her next wave of weaponized nostalgia, "Maybe we should get going…?"

Unbeknownst to Naruto Aingeal blushed brightly when she realized she had gone on such a long tangent though the only tell sign was a slight flickering of her light that went unperceived to Naruto's uninformed eyes, "R-right! Off you go now. I won't be tagging along so I expect you to be on your best behavior while I am away."

Naruto leapt to his feet and tilted his head slightly, "You're leaving? Where to? Did Dervenn wake up again?"

Over the course of the year he had been back to the hollow only a handful of times in order to continue lessons while Aingeal had business to oversee. On those occasions he had learned that the old stump was pretty active in his duties of keeping the fairies aware of disturbances in nature. The most common troubles were forest fires which were handled by a group of rather dedicated aquatic fairies who channeled their light into keeping rivers and, to a lesser extent, oceans clean. He was only vaguely aware of how they performed their duty, but he assumed it was through some kind of amazing fairy techniques that involved the water they were charged with maintaining. With fires and other incidents of destruction there were teams sent out to clean up areas of land and properly bless the soil. The final groups in any event were the teams in charge of planting new seeds and encouraging wild life to return. With so many fairies to coordinate on the daily basis Aingeal would sometimes have no other choice but to bring Naruto with her so that she could keep him close.

Aingeal nodded while placing her arms across her chest, "Yes my little one, but don't you worry about it, you need to focus on the task at hand."

Naruto absently rubbed at his nose as if trying to remember what she was referring to. She was about to tell him off before he snapped his fingers with a bright smile, "Right, friends, fun, no Ana."

Aingeal huffed while her little arms tightened in a very bemused posture that made the boy sweat a little, "Sometimes I fear that you are part _Bagairt_." Before Naruto could interrupt her thoughts by asking what one of those was she held up a hand to silence him, "No going off track again. I need to go, and you need to get to that park. Remember, I have eyes on you and if you try to skip out…"

Naruto leapt on that thought flame before the embers could catch again, "I get it all ready, stop mentioning her name before you summon her here by accident!"

Satisfied that she had terrorized the idea of trying to avoid his mission out of his stubborn little head she gave a nod, "I'll stop… for now. Scoot." And with her final words she shot forward to wrap his little neck with a tight hug that was surprisingly snug considering her size. The boy smiled and gave her little head a small pat to avoid hurting her wings. When her grip vanished so did she in a gentle little flash that he only briefly caught with his peripheral vision.

His smile faded slowly until his face became neutral, _'Time to make friends… right.'_

* * *

Namikaze Minato was many things. He had the patience to endure the woes of raising two demon fueled daughters hell bent on wrapping him so tightly around their pinkies that he would eventually break. He had the strength of will to refuse his beloved wife even at the threat of torture. He had the wisdom to eventually submit and give in to the demands of his slightly overbearing lover before he was forced to sleep on uncomfortable pull out futon couches. For all of these great qualities, and the dozens of other skills and merits he had developed during his years as Hokage and even during his time on the battlefields of war, there was but one thing that could truly bother him: council meetings.

Oh, should you travel the nations and speak to the many great Daimyos and Kages , you would hear tales of paper work that brought on anger, and more often open weeping fits. Such was the fate of the lazy and irresponsible leadership that had festered across the land. With the youthful spirit that had often attracted the unwanted attention of one particularly embarrassing subordinate Minato had long since defeated the overly referenced and incredibly cliché enemy of powerful men. No, instead of paperwork, Minato found the incredibly stuffy council chamber and the overly pompous council members utterly unbearable. During his initial training under the Sandaime he had been disillusioned into believing that the meetings with the Konoha Council were a sweet relief from the monotony of daily routine. 'Council meetings take you away from the endless piles of paperwork and give you the chance to really make things happen…' Minato found those words hollow, and often remarked on the cruelty that Hiruzen had shown him with such deceit.

When it came to paperwork he would freely admit that at times the endless sheets of various colors bored him. Often times several packets submitted for review were cleverly worded ploys by local businesses or Clans looking to one-up their competition by securing certain pieces of legislation. Anything from reduced taxes on specific imports to ordinance making certain forms of advertising illegal could be found swamping the "In" pile on the daily. Such petty squabbles and attempts to undermine the freedoms that Konoha stood for were hardly fitting for a Kage to oversee, but with so few competent, and uncorrupt, bureaucrats he would have to manage, and manage he did. With his routine he was able to juggle all the paperwork, keeping a family, and maintaining his physical conditioning with relative ease.

Sitting in what he humorlessly referred to as the 'Den of Broken Leaves' was another matter all together. He called the Council Chamber such because in his eyes only the most broken citizens of Konoha sat on the council. One would think that a council would be comprised of several individuals working in tandem to oversee the affairs of the village in open forum. On the surface the untrained eye, or the most naïve, would simply assume that the council was functioning as such, but they would be severely mistaken. Perhaps in places like the capital or large cities like Tanzaku-gai such councils would function as forums for the public representatives seeking to influence legislation for the city as a whole. In Konohagakure… there was no general public.

On one side of the… esteemed… council sat several representatives for the civilian sector. Chosen by the non-military population in small elections that generated little attention from the Shinobi Forces outside the occasional unsanctioned rally or out of control riot these men and women let their meaningless advisory positions get to their heads. Often times these people would interject during meetings on issues regarding Shinobi affairs, and even though their ideas or opinions held little to no weight on such things there was the popular belief that their interruptions 'helped' the process and got things done… which was absolutely false. In truth these people rarely ever influenced a decision regarding deployment, evaluation, or execution of punishments, the latter of which was their particular favorite to partake in discussing. Their interruptions were tolerated by the Shinobi present for many reasons, but the most prominent was their lack of interest.

On the opposite end of the spectrum the Shinobi Council was hardly any better during meetings and Minato expected that most saw such gatherings with the same disdain he felt. Being a hidden village Konoha relied heavily on their Shinobi Forces to maintain local security, foreign presence, and steady income. While there were many capable and valuable civilian shinobi that fought and died bravely for their home, the forces would be nothing without the strength of the Clans and their long standing loyalty to the Leaf. Ever since the founding of the village there had been a Shinobi council to keep the families informed and rally their support for large scale actions that effected the entire village. Obviously the Kage's word was law, but without the support of his or her people they might as well slit their own throat before they are killed in their sleep.

Only the heads of each prominent clan were allowed a seat, even if there were several recognized clans that weren't represented. This caused a great many families to seek representation from their more successful and respected neighbors, which would lead to larger conflicts between clans. Those seeking strength would side with clan Uchiha, though more often than not their pleas fell on arrogant, deaf ears. The shinobi clans seeking wealth and prestige through crafts and mercantilism sought aid from the Hyuga, but such dealings were often kept from official records and resulted in heavy fees… fees that left many clans in bankruptcy. Bad deals, back stabbing, and deception kept the poor clans poor, and the rich sitting pretty while the world burned beneath them.

Such were the thoughts running through Minato's head while he sat in his position at the head of the room listening to the veiled threats and layered accusations being sent back and forth around the room between the members of the Konoha Council. The topic currently up for debate had started out as a land dispute between the Nara clan and the Hyuga clan. Currently the two sides had garnered support from various groups on both sides of the room. As the world came back into focus he heard the end of a point being made by the Nara Clan head, a man named Nara Shikaku. He was a rather plain man with brown hair prominent in the Land of Fire, though if you looked beneath the surface you could tell that he had much more going on. The two scars on his right cheek may also give away the strength that he often veiled with a sense of lazy disinterest. One does not earn such marks without staring death in the face and surviving to meet it again another day.

"…and as such our lands have been maintained ever since my ancestors settled here. While we have never seen fit to place any form of barrier around that land, there are signs placed in precise locations near trails, rivers, and several points in between to mark the area off. The simple truth is that we have been paying our taxes on the land long before I took this position and we will continue to do so as long as we remain here." The man spoke with a tone as if reciting from a note card, his eyes half lidded as he rested his chin on his palm.

Minato let his eyes travel up the table to the man Shikaku had been addressing and he found the sight amusing all things considered. The Hyuga Clan head was a very strict and disciplined man named Hyuga Hiashi. There was a running gag among the clans that Hyuga were so full of themselves that they simply split in two like cells in order to reproduce when their egos grew too dense. Such accusations had neither been confirmed nor denied, and their insistence on only allowing Hyuga medics to oversee their pregnancies only fueled the rumor mill flames. The man had straight black hair that gave off a sheen that often seemed more greasy and uninviting than most other Hyuga, though his permanent scowl might have helped create such negative thoughts about the man. Like all of his clansmen he possessed the ever present mark of the Hyuga: the eerie pale eye that seemed to delve into ones soul with their lack of pupil. There were people who found their eyes beautiful, and still some found them utterly creepy and cold. Hiashi fell into the second category simply because the man's attitude was insufferable and his obsession with staring down his nose at others did nothing to warm his image.

Speaking of warming images, Hiashi was sporting a rather flustered face that only bore a small pinkish hue to give away his inner rage. To see the normally schooled Hyuga barely maintaining his façade of emotionless professionalism was truly priceless, but Minato was disappointed when the man was able to gather himself enough to respond in his usual cold and stoic tone, "As much as I would like to continue to argue this point further I must concede for now. I will pursue this again when we next convene so that I might find the right arguments to sway your opinion, Nara-san."

Minato watched with perfectly concealed amusement as Shikaku waved a lazy hand about dismissively. This act only brought slightly more color to Hiashi's face while earning unashamed smirks from two other men sitting on either side of the sleepy brunette.

Before anyone else could speak further Minato felt the chakra pulse signal of his ANBU stationed outside the chamber. The system established for the Hokage ANBU detail was rather simple, though Minato had endeavored to increase security by changing how things had been done. In the beginning ANBU would communicate nonverbally with the Hokage though hand signs when available, and through coded chakra bursts when the situation was unavoidable. Both had their flaws, but something was better than nothing. Hand signs were still a vital form of nonverbal command that Minato used often to keep his team aware of his position and status. The hard part was keeping up with the translation rotation that his ANBU Commander kept. The paper would be delivered with a timed destruction seal active so that within minutes of delivery the sheet of paper would burn through the release of E rank levels of fire chakra.

The rather troublesome security issue had been communicating through bursts of chakra. While the bursts of chakra were never a worry for ANBU level ninja with high reserves and control, the bursts were in no way subtle. Any sensor could easily detect the bursts giving away positions and losing the element of surprise in stressful situations. In order to remedy this Minato had spent months working on a variation of his Hiraishin seal. When he had succeeded with his new toy he spent a great deal of time testing the results with various sensors in and around Konoha to be sure that it worked efficiently. To simplify the explanation of how the seal works one could say that the seal is designed to gently sap chakra from one source, send the chakra to another seal, and finally the second seal would push the gathered chakra into the nearest chakra source. In a more complicated explanation… the two seals were referred to as receivers that would 'receive' chakra flowing from either direction and redirect it to the other through manipulation of the time space continuum. Without having to actively send a pulse of chakra from multiple Tenketsu there would be no risk of sensors picking up any sudden flares. The person receiving the chakra would instantly absorb the near insignificant energy sent to their system without anyone being the wiser.

Feeling the 'pulse' as he affectionately termed it he understood the meaning and signaled the ANBU stationed by the door to unseal the entrance. Like the machines they were often compared to the ANBU leapt to their duty and the entrance was unsealed in the blink of an eye and just as quickly resealed before even the most skilled of spies might infiltrate their precious nerve center. Minato held out his hand toward the approaching agent and soon his fingers closed around a rather small scroll that bore the unmistakable mark of a foreign hidden village. He could feel the residual chakra that lingered after his ANBU had verified the scroll was safe to open. Such security measures often took hours or even days to conduct depending on the size, origin, and current military status of the lands involved. Noticing the mark of Takigakure, two parallel lines resembling two halves of a bisected arrow, he estimated that this had been delivered to the Cryptography Department three days prior.

All eyes were on Minato as he broke the scroll open to examine the message within. He kept his features schooled as he reread the message several time in order to be sure the information was registering in his head properly.

' _For Kami's sake, did this really have to come up now?'_

The young Kage set the scroll down and gave a sideways glance towards the elderly man to his right. Sarutobi Hiruzen, dressed in a comfortable set of robes with his lit pipe held firmly between his lips, saw the look and understood that whatever was in that message wasn't welcoming. Minato cleared his throat before giving the civilian council members a firm look, "The meeting has now officially been closed. I wish you all a good day on your way home and I look forward to our next meeting. I will be looking over all of your proposals thoroughly until then."

The civilians gave each other looks that spoke of confusion and defiance, but none of them had the guts to protest a direct dismissal from the village leader, particularly a man famous for slaughter well over a thousand men in a single battle. With deliberately slow movements the non military personnel shuffled about their seats before leaving with their bags and folders. After the last of them had vanished through the set of double doors leading out to the hall a very heavy atmosphere settled over the Shinobi who had not moved from their seats. Minato's obvious body language had indicated just who he had wanted to dismiss, even if his words had been general in order to settle the suspicions of the irritable civilians.

The silence was broken after Minato had gathered his thoughts, "We have received a rather… interesting request from our allies in Takigakure." He paused here to sip from his glass of water and let the shinobi present a moment to focus, "It would seem that their resident Jinchuriki recently lost control and caused significant damage to the forests surrounding Taki. They suspect that someone may have either damaged or altered the seal on their vessel, but without a proper seal master they are grasping at straws. They ask that we send someone with enough skill to determine if the seal is in danger of breaking."

A few very quiet murmurs floated through the room as Minato allowed his advisors, and in some cases friends, discuss the situation. On the surface this was a simple request from one friendly village to another, particularly an ally that shared a border and had provided aid several times over the years. The problem was the possibility of deception, and often times wars began between former friends over a backstabbing. One such historical reference had been the unexpected betrayal of Kiri when their shinobi forces had joined the alliance responsible for the destruction of Uzu. While not as publicly known as the Konoha alliance, Uzu had shared a rather long and fruitful peace with their friends in Kiri before that unfortunate day. For all intents and purposes, Taki could quite easily be trapping Konoha by requesting a seal master for the purpose of assassinating them to sabotage Konoha's power base, or the even more bold move of breaking their allegiance to the Leaf.

On the other hand this request was completely understandable and could quite literally be exactly what it appeared to be. Aside from the rare seal experts that lived among the monasteries preparing religious tags and performing exorcisms, Konoha was the only village that could boast having master level sealing professionals. While one such expert had fled the village to pursue perversions, and another had abandoned the art in favor of using calligraphy for his writing career, Minato and his wife Kushina both actively practiced the art on levels that even the Shodaime and Nidaime Hokages had failed to achieve, though the Shodaime may or may not have been hiding his skills behind his famous veil of odd emotional flip flopping. There were others among the ANBU and Elite that studied sealing to certain degrees, and there were rumors that a local blacksmith in the civilian sector descended from ancient sealing masters, so calling for Konoha's aid with seals was no surprise, no matter how suspicious the older shinobi wanted to be.

A light cough drew the attention of everyone in the room and Minato nearly let his face fall to the table in front of him. Seated off to the left of Minato's side and far back enough to disassociate himself from the common civilians was the bane of Minato and his predecessor's existence: Shimura Danzo. The man was an odd sight, but despite his rather calm and quiet demeanor one would be hard put not to feel a little intimidated. He never spoke openly unless it helped to further his own rather shady agenda, and when he did speak it was quick with no wasted breath. He could be cold, efficient, and very, very persuasive. During Minato's training under the Sandaime he had spoken rather briefly about Danzo, but the words had sunk in quite clearly.

" _Minato-kun, I assume that you have heard the childish proverb about the early bird, correct? Shimura Danzo is not the early bird. No, he is the patient hawk that watches the early bird come to snatch the worm every day at dawn. The bird will fatten and grow arrogant, and when the time is right the hawk will swoop in and snatch the early bird and his fat belly, and then he will have been the one to catch the early bird and the worm."_

Danzo let his weary eye open slightly to scan the room. Medical bandages wrapped around his head and torso covered old scars and what must be the gaping socket of his lost eye, as well as his allegedly crippled right arm. He held a cane in his left hand that he sharply rapped against the floor to silence any lingering whispers so that he had the undivided attention of the room. Though he didn't outwardly show it, he was obviously pleased to see that his presence was held with such regard, whether it be out of respect or fear be damned.

"This request is not something that we should take lightly. I understand the importance of maintaining the stability of demonic vessels…" Here he paused a moment to let his gaze fall on Minato, "…however, we cannot assume responsibility for foreign powers who might one day turn such vessels against us."

Minato let that little look Danzo gave him slide for the time being. It would not do well to fall for such obvious plays to rile him up, especially without knowing exactly why the old man wanted him to respond. Thankfully the role of antagonist in Danzo's little play was taken by the only female member of the Shinobi council, and quite frankly the only council member who was more intimidating than Danzo's cold and efficient attitude. The woman let loose a feral growl drawing the attention of the entire room, much to her unspoken satisfaction. Purple lips smirked only slightly, more to revel her sharpened canine teeth than to portray her amusement. Red markings not dissimilar to the fangs slightly protruding through her predatory smirk decorated her cheeks as a symbol of respect for her family and clan. Wild and unruly brown hair topped off her look that spoke of danger should anyone cross her path and disrespect her. Often times when Danzo spoke with cold and uncaring terms towards allies both inside and outside the village she would follow up with a retort that was only slightly rude… well, slightly rude according to her standards. Inuzuka Tsume was not a woman to cross, and Danzo seemed to enjoy getting under her skin, like an infuriating tic with a never say die spirit.

Tsume let her hand settle on the table in front of her before dragging her nails across the polished wood. When she was satisfied with her work she let the hand rest before speaking in a clear, albeit strained, tone, "With all due respect, Danzo- _sama_ , Takigakure has been one of our oldest allies. No, they have not been our strongest allies, nor have they ever been able to provide meaningful gains outside of their strategic placement during the great wars, but they have asked for very little. We would be foolish to outright deny their request for aid."

Danzo studied her for a moment as if trying to think of a response. Minato was no fool though, and he could tell that the old man was simply biding his time to further rile up the woman challenging him. It was common knowledge that Tsume was a woman who valued very simple things in life. Loyalty to the pack was paramount, and this extended beyond the scope of family reaching out to the entire village and their foreign allies. If she were in charge of things the most talented seal masters would have already been summoned to the council chamber. Beyond loyalty was a willingness to take action. She was by no means a reckless, thoughtless barbarian as some would like to believe. Beneath her brash and hard exterior she was a capable, intelligent, and pensive woman. That aside, she was not one to stew for long, and when it came to cases concerning the well being of the pack, it was usually act first and question later. Knowing this, Danzo was allowing time to pass in order to get Tsume to act out and weather away any support she might have in favor of more level heads.

"You think I would outright deny their request? You place words in my mouth and ideas in my head, Inuzuka-san. I suggest caution. There have been many times in our long history where stronger alliances have crumbled in the blink of an eye. I do not believe that such a small and underequipped village like Taki would attempt to do anything too… severe. That being said, we cannot rule out the opportunity to work this in our favor…" Danzo trailed off near the end to allow his words to sink in. To his satisfaction he could see a couple faces brighten with interest.

The lazy and slow voice of Nara Shikaku responded in a very disinterested tone, "Danzo-sama, Taki has very few resources that are uncommon in the Land of Fire. Also, while they are famous for some rather interesting techniques, our last inventory assessment of the Shinobi Library confirmed that we are not exactly wanting for techniques at this time. Recently updated Bingo Books show very few notable shinobi within their village, and their craftsmen struggle to keep up with the demands of their shinobi forces. With no valuable resources, no rare techniques, no promising ninja to transfer, and no specialized weapon designs to add to our collection… what exactly can we ask for in return?"

Between the well informed response of the current Jonin Commander and the unashamed smirk on Tsume's face, Danzo's displeasure was evident by the scowl on his face. While he was well aware of the reports on Taki's current stats, he was not aware that the Nara had been privy to such details. He had hoped to further his influence over the council before meeting any resistance, but it would seem that the odds were against him. His scowl slowly bled away before he spoke in his normal tone to mask his inner frustration, "I understand, Nara-san, but you forget that Taki has one resource that no other village can boast."

Here was when Minato felt the need to intervene before anyone got any ideas, "Danzo, we cannot ask Taki to sacrifice _that_. If we accept their request we will do so out of friendship. Such kindness will only strengthen our alliance. That is my final word on this. I would hear suggestions on who to send."

Danzo silently seethed, but without a powerbase to back up his position he had to withdraw and plan his next few moves. He knew that the greed of the Hyuga and Uchiha would have been very helpful in securing a more favorable outcome, and he may have even found an ally with the logical Aburame if the Nara had not been so thorough in his response. There was still a small chance that he could come out on top in this whole mess, but it was very slim. He would have to proceed very, very carefully.

One of the quieter members of the council spoke after a few moments of hushed conversations. He was seated to the right of Nara Shikaku. Despite his silence during council meetings he was actually a very friendly and outspoken personality. His ashy blonde hair spiked up top and then ran down his back in a tight and neatly kept pony tail. Well defined jaw lines gave him a very strong demeanor that often left women his age swooning, and blue-green eyes sparkled whenever he smiled to enhance his handsome features. Yamanaka Inoichi was a man of class, a gentleman among men, unintentional lady killer, loving father, and the bane of captured enemy shinobi.

"If the information we have is correct, Hokage-sama, there are only two seal masters within the village with the skill to alter or repair Jinchuriki seals… and I don't think that we should send our Kage."

Minato rubbed the bridge of his nose gently, "You're right, Yamanaka-san, unfortunately the only other person affiliated with the village who could handle this is… probably somewhere in the Land of Hot Water…"

Ignoring the light thump of a head falling to a table nearby, Shikaku let his eyes close as he spoke again, "That is not entirely true, Hokage-sama. If I am not mistaken, Namikaze Uzumaki Kushina is well versed in the art of seals… We understand your reluctance to send your wife away on a possibly dangerous mission, but it would seem we have no other choice at this time. The only other option is to refuse and either promise aid at a later date, or refuse outright and wash our hands of the whole thing."

Minato would have liked to argue that point, but in all honesty the brunette had hit the proverbial nail on the head. Of course he would be reluctant to send his beloved away to a foreign land to help secure a potentially unstable Jinchuriki seal. Not only could she be at risk of capture or assault, it would take her away from the girls. Eyeing the council he couldn't help but flinch at some of the expectant looks he was receiving from the colder members. Hiashi and the Uchiha head Fugaku in particular seemed eager for him to crack under the pressure. Steeling himself to maintain his dominant façade he surveyed the room until he caught sight of the still slightly seething Inuzuka Tsume. The smirk that would have spread across his lips had he not been controlling his outward emotions would have had the Hyuga and Uchiha quivering harder than his KI at full blast.

* * *

' _The heck was I thinking?'_

The sun had just settled at its peak over Konoha as shops set about exchanging goods and preparing for the afternoon crowd. The hustle and bustle overhead had quieted as the Genin ninja teams performing their daily training and D Ranked missions had settled down for lunch. The parks around the village were flooded with youthful laughter and the unmistakable sound of children playing games and messing about. One such park happened to sit deep within the Clan District where few civilian children ever wandered for fear that they would be forced out. The park wasn't as large as the one that Naruto had spent a year training in and repairing, but because of the daily traffic it was at least well maintained. Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto stood at the edge of the park just off the cobblestone street that led further into the district.

While making his way to the park he had gone over his instructions several times in his head. Step one was easy enough: go to the park. Step two had been simple: enter the park. By that point he had decided that his grandmother Aingeal assumed he was some kind of upright monkey. Upon arrival at the park he found that the final step was a bit more daunting than he would have liked: make friends. How does one simply make friends? A year ago he would probably have stood around like a flower waiting for the buzzing bees to come to him. A year ago he would have been content to meet no one, let the day pass by, and walk away with a dopey smile and consider the day complete. Now… now, he had the threat of an angry grandmother and an overbearing… aunt? He really, _really_ , didn't want to have to deal with Ana unless it was absolutely necessary.

The other children around the park were ages ranging from four to seven and from what he could tell, there were children from just about every clan present. The Inuzuka could be seen playing various games with several small dogs. Several rather awkward children were standing in a shady patch examining termites that were gathering on one of the more unfortunate trees near the edge of the park, clearly Aburame. A small group of adults from the Hyuga clan were walking beside three very uncomfortable looking children, one of whom looked about his age, though she seemed to be glued to the leg of her… handler? A clutch of black haired children were rushing about trying, and failing, to run like shinobi while throwing lit fire crackers and calling out random Fire technique names.

' _Uchiha… wonder why they like fire so much?'_

It took no time at all for Naruto to realize that there was no way in hell he was ready to approach anyone, no matter what was at stake. It wasn't so much that he was afraid, because he was totally not scared of anything… except maybe ghosts. Truth be told he simply had no idea how to approach anyone. From what he could tell everyone had their own little cliques and very few mixed groups could be seen. Up until he had met Aingeal and her… his people… he had simply gone with the flow of things and taken very little time to study how others interact with people. He had been present when his parents hosted guests, but he had never been able to speak for long with anyone. He'd seen his sister Akane approach others with a happy-go-lucky, boisterous attitude that often left people rolling their eyes or sniggering. Mito was far more reserved, though this came off as shy and prompted others to tease her simply for the enjoyment of embarrassing her.

His mother Kushina was simply an older Akane, though people often regarded her with a certain degree of caution. He had never been victim to her rather dangerous anger, but there were some things that seals just couldn't block out… like the vibrations of overpowered fists smashing into barriers and walls. Finally there was his father, Minato, the Yondaime, self-repressed lady-killer… the man was blessed with a charming smile that spoke volumes more than his actual voice. Often times he could convey messages simply by giving others a mere look. Speculations were once circulating that he had some form of Dojutsu that had been lost to time. Regardless, even with his untapped skills and undeniable charisma, he was socially inept at times and often needed to collect his thoughts while masking his thoughtlessness with his trademark head scratching maneuver. Such is the fate of those who are orphaned young and grow up with few adult influences outside the lukewarm indifference of matrons.

Naruto found a patch of grass in the shade of a low hanging tree that was soft beneath his feet. Though the natural light of the area was there, it paled in comparison to the warmth he felt in his own little work in progress. He sat down in the warm grass and let his fingers tangle between the thin blades. Each small green strip dripped with cool water, not enough to spread very far, but enough to tickle the senses and moisten the skin. Aingeal had taught him many things about nature, things to help him understand the value of nature and it's beauty. With a smile on his face he couldn't resist letting his body flop back so that his entire back could rest in the warmth beneath him. It was hard to believe that he had never been aware of this feeling before… he had been blind to it, ignorant.

He had no idea how much time had passed when his musings were broken by the sound of slow steps approaching from his right. When he opened his eyes, which he had closed at some point while enjoying the embrace of nature, his cerulean blues met chocolate brown. Taking in a bit more after a few surprised blinks, he realized he was looking up at one of the Nara clansmen based on their looks and the symbol on their shirt. Their face looked bored, almost sleepy even though they had to be about his age and he had long since left behind the need to nap midday. Their hair was a bit short, but just long enough to be tied back tightly. They were wearing a tan t-shirt with green trim and black shorts. A pair of simple black sandals finished off their very plain look.

Naruto didn't bother sitting up as he looked up into their eyes. After a few momets of silence while they studied each other he decided to break the ice, "Hello, Nara-san?"

The young boy blinked before he let a small annoyed look cross his face. Naruto chose not to speak because he could tell that he wasn't so much annoyed as he was concentrating on something. Sure enough the kid's curiosity got the best of him, "Nara Shikamaru… hello. I've never seen you around before. If your hair is anything to go by, you must be the Yondaime's son."

"Got it in one. Name's Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto. I'd prefer just Naruto if you don't mind… the whole formal speech thing is a bit of a hassle at times." Naruto smiled a bit before holding out a fist towards the Nara boy.

Shikamaru eyed the fist for a moment before deciding that bumping fists wasn't too much work and returned the gesture, "Sure, as long as you call me Shikamaru. Honorifics are a real pain. Mind if I join you?"

Naruto gave a small shrug before closing his eyes again, "Go right ahead."

Shikamaru flopped down lazily nearby with his head near Naruto's so that neither of them had to deal with accidentally kicking the other. The following silence might have been awkward for some, but for Naruto and Shikamaru it was welcome. For Naruto the silence was accepted for what it was without any lingering worries or doubts. Obviously if Shikamaru wanted to talk then he would, or he would leave, either way it was what it was. For the Nara it was a surprise, but not an unwelcome one. Due to his parents association with the Yamanaka and Akimichi clans, he was often forced to hang out with their children. Choji, the young Akimichi clan heir, was all right to hang with if you could tolerate his obsessive eating habits. Shikamaru loved the portly fella like a brother, but he could at least try to munch away on something a bit less… noisy. Chip bags were like man's little answer to what is worse than crickets in the summer?

The Yamanaka princess, Ino, was a completely different problem all together. Even at seven years old she was the biggest gossip hound of their generation, and possibly the village as a whole. While he could tolerate her idle chit chat on the daily basis, it got really annoying having her reprimand his attitude and habits whenever she was around. He had tried simply being alone a few times, and while he found the peace he desired, he was left with a hollow victory. Being alone was lonely, plain and simple, and even if you were doing the one thing that you loved more than anything, without someone to share it with it was pointless. In retrospect it might have been wise to seek other members of his clan for companionship during his quiet relaxation, but bothering with hindsight was a bit too much work.

After a half hour of companionable silence it was surprisingly the Nara who decided to break the monotony, "So, Naruto… I figured you would be a bit more like your sisters."

"If you mean loud, endearingly obnoxious, and determined to a fault, then I can see where you might be having trouble putting the pieces together." Naruto replied with a grin, "I have my moments, but they are a bit different. I am sure that you may have heard the rumors about how they were ill when they were younger?"

Shikamaru let out a small grunt in the affirmative to give Naruto the go ahead to proceed. Of course he had heard about the young Princesses of the Leaf and their rough start. For the first few years of their lives they had supposedly been deathly ill. It wasn't until their fifth birthday that they had been introduced to anyone outside of their family, and Shikamaru had always found it odd how… healthy and full of life two allegedly sickly children behaved. When he had asked his father about it the man had been short and vague, though he had seen a look of pity in his elder's eyes. Without any evidence to support or deny their claims of illness he had decided to set the matter aside for another time… if he found the time. Who needs the hassle?

"Well, with their illness they weren't given much time to play. Ever since they got well Kaa-san and Tou-san have been training them non-stop and giving them proper vitamins. You can barely keep them down long enough to eat these days before they're bouncing back up to rush into the next activity. I'm kind of glad they don't give me any of those weird pills." Naruto finished his lie with a chuckle.

Naruto had discovered the rumors of his siblings' illness some time after Aingeal had shown him the truth about their birthday. It was obvious to him that the adults were all well aware of the truth judging by their looks of pity. Of course the population loved Mito and Akane, who wouldn't? Mito was a respectful, albeit sometimes boisterous, girl with a heart of gold and a beautiful smile. Akane, while much wilder than her sister, was incredibly playful and brought energy with her where ever she went. In the eyes of most of the people it didn't matter what was inside of them, Mito and Akane were their beloved princesses. If the people were comfortable with their lies and ignorance then Naruto would do his best to keep up the charade to protect his little siblings.

Shikamaru was unaware of how the boy would act when lying so he had to accept his words for now, "Troublesome medicine… sounds like something my friend Choji's clan would make."

"I take it Choji is an Akimichi, right?" Naruto placed his hands under his head in an attempt to get more comfortable.

Shikamaru hummed an affirmative, "Bit obvious considering how close our clans are, I guess…"

Naruto chuckled, "Guess so, but I was actually more convinced by his name. A lot of the clans follow an unspoken rule to name their heirs after their fathers."

Shikamaru blinked his eyes a few times idly before closing them and giving a small smirk, "I hadn't considered that. You're pretty observant."

"Well, when you have a little woman hovering over your shoulder and threatening you with pain if you don't study… you learn to thoroughly remember everything you read." Naruto replied, his voice going flat near the end.

Shikamaru and Naruto went silent for several minutes before both of them felt a cold shiver run down their spines. The two young boys exchanged a look before suddenly the both of them started laughing. Naruto held his sides as they began to burn and ache, but even through the pain of his cramping muscles he couldn't deny the happy feeling spreading through him. It wasn't that Naruto had never laughed before, because that was completely untrue. He had laughed at funny jokes that he read in books, and the small things that Aingeal had done to prank or tease people and her fellow faries alike. This laugh was different because he was sharing it with someone who had no obligation to connect with him. This wasn't a family member, this wasn't one of his grandmother's guards or helpers… this was just another kid who had wandered over to enjoy the shade and lay in the grass.

This was his first friend.

* * *

 **And done, finally. I feel pretty bad about the delay in updating this, especially with how long it had been done and simply waiting for me to edit it and touch it up. I won't bother you with a bunch of useless excuses. I was suffering a bit of depression lately and instead of drowning in booze or bad food I was obsessing over reading fanfictions to lose myself. I have a lot of ideas stewing for this fiction, so I hope I can get out of my funk to deliver more.**

 **Read and Review. Feel free to suggest possible pairings, technique concepts, and more.**

 **Love your kohai, you beautiful senpais.**


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